"Mighty in the Scriptures" : a memoir of Adolph Saphir, D.D.

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A MEMOIR

OF

ADOLPH SAPHIR, D.D

BY

The Rev. GAVIK CAllLYLE, M.A. (Edin.)

" A certain Jew ... An eloquent man, and mighty in the
Scriptures." — Acts xviii. 24.

FLEMING H. REVELL COMPANY

NEW YORK CHICAGO TORONTO

PUBLISHERS OF EVANGELICAL LITERATURE

PEEFACE.

TT has been impossible to publish sooner the Memoir
J- of the lamented Dr. Adolph Saphir. On account of
his sudden death, which followed so closely that of his
wife, there was a delay in the settlement of his affairs;
and, consequently, no access could be had to documents of
any kind till about the middle of last year — a year after
his death. When I was then asked to write the Memoir,
much time and labour were required to collect letters
and documents from friends and correspondents of Dr.
Saphir. But though there has consequently been delay,
the Memoir will, I believe and hope, be not less valaed
by devoted friends, of whom he had very many, nor less
interesting to the general public.

The life of Dr. Saphir was one of remarkable interest,

not so much in its variety of incidents, as in its early

associations, and in the striking jpersonncl of the man.

This is seen in his thorough Jewish type of mind and

intellect, intensified by the genius of the Saphir family, in

the freshness and originality of his ideas and expressions,

and above all, in his spiritual power — his deep insight

into the meaning of Scripture and the relations of its

different parts.

• The expression, '' Mighty in the Scriptures," truly

P describes him. In his commanding knowledge of the

spirit and purport of the various books of the Bible, few

- preachers of his own or any age approach him. He fore-

^ shadows in this what great results may be anticipated

o from the promised restoration of Israel.

\ 174755

IV PREFACE.

We append to the Memoir three carefully chosen
Sermons delivered at the three different spheres of his
ministry — Greenwich, Blackheath, and Belgravia; also a
Selection of Pithy Sayings and Short Extracts. These
Sermons and almost all the Extracts are i^ublished for the
first time.

As to Dr. Saphir's social characteristics, one who had
known him for a quarter of a century describes him
thus accurately : His visits were increasingly appreciated
in our family, revealing as they alwa3^s did more of his
wonderful mind and grasp of thought, brightened, when
ill-health did not depress him, by that elasticity of spirit
and keen sense of humour wdiich made him, to his more
intimate friends, such a charming companion. His rare
wit and humour were said to be family characteristics,
inherited from his father, and in Dr. Saphir were never
allowed to lead to the very slightest irreverence for sacred
things. His many-sided intellect could quickly enter into
everything in Religion, Literature, and Politics ; he would
seem only to glance into the morning papers and would
at once give you a resume of everything in them.

We have had many letters not only expressing interest
in the publication of this volume, but praying for God's
guidance in the preparation of it. We quote only one of
them, from the late Dr. Andrew Bonar, wdio, when I
wrote to him and then saw him, last summer in Glasgow,
was greatly interested. " Dr. Saphir," he wu'ote, " w^as
indeed a Hebrew of Hebrews, in the best sense." " May
the Lord give you the pen of a ready writer, and bless
your labour of love ! "

Gavin Carlyle.

CONTENTS,

I. The Call of God.

The Deputation of the Church of Scotland — Inquiry as to Fields for Jewish
Missions — Visit to Pesth — How brought about — The Archduchess Maria
Dorothea and her Husband, the Prince Palatine — Dr. Keith's Hlness —
Friendship of the Archduchess, and her promise of Protection to the
Mission ^;, 1

II, The Pesth Mission.

" Rabbi " Duncan the First Missionary — His great Popularity and Influ-
ence among Jews and Christians — Mrs. R. Smith instructs the Daughters
of the Archduchess, viz. the present Queen of the Belgians and the
Mjther of the present Queen of Spain — The Spirit of Inquiry 2^- 9

III. The Saphir Family.

The Three Brothers — The Father of Adolph, Israel Saphir — His Learning
and great Influence in Hungary — The Simultaneous Conversion of
Father and Sou — Adolph's Avowal of his Faith — Reminiscences of
Adolph's Childhood by his Sister — Dr. Keith's Ro[>ort — References to
Adolph's Father — The Sai)hir Family ... ... ... ... 'p. Ih

IV. Baptism of the Saphir Household,

Mr. Saphir, his Wife and Daughters and .Adolph .baptized in June 1843—
Crowded Assembl}' of Jews and others — Impressive Address of the
Father — Secret First Communion — "Sound of the noiseless steps"' —
Earnestness of Young Adolph — Impression in Hungary and Germany
— Discussion in the Press— Striking Letter of Adolph's Father p. 29

V. Influence of the Court.

The Archduke and Archduchess foster the Mission — They encourage the
sending of Evangelists all through Hungary— The Archduke's Peaceful
Death in 1847 — Subsequent Persecution of the Archduchess — Her Death
in 1855 p. 41

VI. Adolph's Departure from Pe.sth.

Adolph leaves Pesth with Edersheim and Tomory — How they got away —
Edersheim's Conversion and Career — Ra]>id Progress of tlie IMission—
Troublous Times — The Hungarian War — Tlie Fields ripe unto Harvest
— Expulsion of the Missionaries — Mission Work resumed ... 'p- 47

VII. xVdolph's Education in Berlin.

Adolph in Edinburgh — Mrs. Duncan — Education in Berlin, 1844 to 1848
— Attends the Gymnasium — Religious Difficulties — Letter to Mr. Win-
gate — Becomes acquainted witli the Rev. Theodore Meyer — Happy
Influence of this Fricndsliip — Effect of hi'; Difficulties on his future
Doctrine and Teaching ... ... ... ... ... ... j9. 5S

vi CONTENTS.

VIIL Philipp Saphir and his Sister Elizabeth.
Memoir of Philipp written by Adolpli when a Student in Edinburgh
— Philipp's early Carelessness and Worldliness — Conversion and Baptism
— Training at CarlsruVie — Delicacy — Intense Sufferins^s — Starting
Young Men's So<-iety— Opening of School for Jewish Children — Its
Great Success — His Joyful Death — Elizabeth Saphir described by her
Sister ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... p. 65

IX. College Career in Scotland.
Adolph's Stay in Glasgow— Session 1848-9— Tutor with Mr. William
Brown in Aberdeen — Acquaintance with WiPiam Fleming Stevenson
— Mutual Benefit — Great Influence of this Friendship on his Life —
Visits the Stevensons in Strabane — A Second Home — His Description
of Stevensoui^, ... ... ... ... .. ... ... ^^ 90

X. Letters of Student Days.
Letter to Kingsley, and Reply of Kingsley — Letters to Donald Macleod,
now Editor of Good Words, and others — Unreal Orthodox Phraseology —
Right Method of studying Scripture — Union with Christ— The Re-
action against Shams threatening to become itself a mighty Sham —
German Literat'.n-e — Striking Dream — Consciousness of Magnetic Influ-
ence — Joyousness of Easter and Pentecost — Ruskin — True Self-Culture
— God the Source of all Personality — Claudius and Manly Christianity —
Mission Work begun ... ... ... ... ... ... ^a 100

XL Ordination to the Jewish Work.
Licence as a Preacher, and Ordination in Belfast — Dr. Cooke presides — His
Marriage — Mrs. Saphir's Character and Influence — Hamburg — His Idea
of Jewish Missions — His Remarkable Tracts — Israel Pick's Influence —
Threatened with Military Service by Austria — His Views as to Methods
of Work not sustained by the Mission Committee— He resigns ... p. 118

XII. Ministry to Germans in GLAsao^v.
Norman Macleod's Interest and Friendship — Letter of Principal Brown on
his Work in Glasgow — Letters to a Friend — His Work among the Ger-
mans—His Anxieties — Jowett's Book on Paul — Birth of his Daughter —
Call to South Shields _ ^.127

XIIL Beginning of Life-Work in England.
Settlement at South Shields— Mr. J. C. Stevenson, M.P., and Mrs. Stev-
enson — His First Experimen^s as to the Method of Delivery — The
Method adopted — His Idea of Preaching — His Appearance and Manner
— His Book on Conversion — Rev, James Hamilton, D.D. — Death of his
only Child ;a 132

XIV. Settlement at Greenwich.
The Rev. George Duncan — The Congregation — Speedy Popularity — The
Church needs to be enlarged — Letters to Mr. Stevenson, M.P., and
others as to his Work— Letters descriptive of Saph'r and his Ministry —
Edward Irving— Campbell of Row — Sermon to Children— Letters to
Lady Kinloch — Joy in his Work — Spiritual Fruits ... ... _p. 138

XV. Literary Activity.
His Literary Tastes and Power — Wide Knowledge of Literature, German
and Englisli — Contributes to Good TFords—l^otes of various Contribu-
tions and Extracts — Tour in Germany with the Macleods and Stevenson
—His Tracts— r/i/- Golden A B C of the Jews, kc jy. 153

CONTENTS. vii

XV.T. Fame in London.

Narrative by Mr. James E, Mathieson — Address in Stafford Rooms —
Impression on Browulow North — Address repeated in Hanover Square
Rooms— Lord Shaftesbury — This Address the Basis of Christ and the
Scriptures— koXion as to Hymns — Value as a Teacher ... p. l7o

XVIL 'CliniST AND THE SCRIPTURES.'

Its Importance and Originality — Short Survey of its Arguments — The
Second Comincf of Christ — Opposition to the " Broad Church " Theology
— The Lord's Prayer — The Future Kingdom 7^.180

XVIII. Close of Ministry at Greenwich.

Sketch of Mr. and Mrs. Saphir by Canon j\IcCormick — His Health failing
— Always Fragile — Leave of Absence for a Year — Typhoid Fever in the
Engadine — His Influence there — Return in 1871 — Resignation of his
Charge in 1872 |). 201

XIX. BECriNNiNCr OF Ministry in West London.

Purchase for him of a large Church at Notting Hill — Money obtained easily
— Church at once filled — ^^Mcmbers of all Churches join — His Thursday
Lectures attended by numerous Clerg}^ and other Persons of Influence —
Liberal Supporters of the "Work — Great Activity of the Congregation —
Call to Scotland — Moody and Saukey's Visit to London ... ^;, 211

XX. Lectures on the Hebrews and the Divinity of Christ.
Majestic Style of the Epistle— Its Central Idea— The Glory of the New
Covenant — Christ and Moses — The High-Priesthood of Christ— Alleged
Priesthood of the Clergy— Pauline Authorship— Lecture on the Divinity
of Christ — Jewish Difficulties— Personal Testimony p. 2\9>

XXL Letters of his Later Life.

Comfort in Bereavement — The Church, what it is, and Baptism — Princess
Alice's Death — Church Order — Apostolic Succession — Faith without a
Knowledge of the Spirit's AVork — The Fall and Redemption^ necessarily
connected— The Future Punishment Controversy — The Present State of
the Churches— Broad Churchism — ''The Catholic Apostolic Church" —
Crucified with Christ — A Vicarious Atonement — Schleiermacher — Separ-
ation from the World — The Lord's Day — Perfectionism — A Free Gospel
and Election — The Connection of the Present and Future Lives — "The
Higher Life" — Dr. Keith's Last Davs — German Translations of the
Bible— Influence of Trial ... " T'- 237

XXII. Ministry in West London from 1875 to 1880.

His Assistants — Rev. IT. E. Brooke, Rev, J. Stephens, and Rev. J. H. Top-
ping — Lady Grant — Miss Cavendish — His Failure of Strength-— Difficul-
ties — Nervousness — Degree of Doctor of Divinity from Edinburgh — ■
Resignation in 1880— The Misses Jacomb— Brief Ministry at Kensington

p. 263

XXIII. Ministry in Belgravia.
Congregation of Halkin St.— Rev. J. T. Middlemiss his Assistant— Extracts
from his Diary, and Saphir's Letters to him— Record of his Intercourse
with Saphir— Resignation of Halkin St. Church— Lectures on the Divine
Unity of Scripture— Mr. Grant Wilson's Reminiscences— Letter to a
Servant— A New School Minister— To whom are the Epistles addressed ?
— Carlyle— A Family Affliction- Letters to a Widowed Niece— Letter
to a Norwegian Sea-Captain on Baptism ... ... ... ^.273

viii CONTENTS.

XXIV. Devotion to the Jews and Jewish Mission,

Love to Israel of Moses and of Paul — Pauline Doctrine of Israel's unchang-
ing Position — What was Israel's Glory ? — Israel's Present Condition —
Prophecies fulfilled, and Projjhecies to be fulfilled— The Future of Israel
bright and glorious — Israel's Claim upon the ^entile Churches — The
Everlasting Nation — What will be accomplished through Israel — The
Rabinowich and Lichtenstein Movements — Rev. C. A. Schonberger —
Delitzsch's Early Interest in the Jews — His Revival of Jewish Missions
in Germany — Mr. Schonberger's Visits to Lichtenstein and Rabiiowich
— The Establishment of the Rabinowich Council, with Saphir as Presi-
dent — His Great Interest in the Work — Jubilee of the Scottish Jewish
Mission — Address at Mildraay Jewish Conference ... ... p, 295

XXV. Closing Days.

Residence at Notting Hill — Services sought — Many Afflictions — Vi.'iit to
Bournemouth — Happy Ministry there — Letter on Liix Mundi — Renirn
Home — Last Sermon — Mrs. Saphir's Death — His Lt^ters in re<mrd to
her Death and Funeral — His own Sudden Death and Funeral — Rev. R.
Taylor's Funeral Addres.s — Testimony of Rev. C. H. Spurgeon and
others — Inscription on the Tombstone ... ... ... ... p. 319

XXV I. Pithy Sayings and Shoet Extracts.

The Christian's Walk— What a Beautiful Saviour I have— The Devil's
Gos[)el — Going to Heaven — Little Steps— Answers to Prayer — The Bible
and Nature— The Penitent Thief — God gives the Superfluiti-s — Out
and Out Christians— False and True Worship — Union with Christ —
The Trinity — Beauty of Scripture — Jesus identifying Himself with
Humanity — Preaching, what it is Heaven's Inhabitants —The A])0.stolic
Church — The Cross— Affliction and its Blessed Influences — Keejiing the
Garments always White — The Lord's Supper and the Passover — As.sur-
ance — God in the Old Testament — Union of Christians — Joy precedes
Peace— The Wonderful, Tender Love of God — God and Satan— The Jews
— Faith and Prayer — Genius anl Spirituality — The Body not the Chief
Centre of Sin The Apostles and Idolatry— The Apo-tl s— " The World "
— Preaching Christ according to the Scriptures — " Except ye become as
Little Children " p. Sil

The Christian's Hope.
A Sermon Preached in St. Mark's Presb3''tevian Church, Greenwich,
Dec. 31, 1871 p. 384

The Feast of Pentecost.
A Sermon Preached in Trinity Presbyterian Church, Notting Hill,
Feb. 17, 1877 p. 403

The AVise Virgins.
A Sermon Preached in Belgrave Presbyterian Church, July 1, 1883 /;. 418

APPENDIX A.
Dr. Keith's Illness— The Archduchess p. 430

APPENDIX B.
Dr. Duncan's Wonderful Influence in Pesth p. 437

APPENDIX C.

Dr. Saphik's Uncle, Morttz G. Saphir. Poet and Satirist p. 444

THE LIFE OF ADOLPH SAPHIE

CHAPTER I.

THE CALL OF GOD.

The Deputation of the Church of Scotland — Inquiry as to
Fields for Jewish Missions — Visit to Pesth — How brought
about — The Archduchess Maria Dorothfa and her Husband,
the Prince Palatine — Dr. Keith's Illness — Friendship of
the Archduchess, and her promise of Protection to the
Mission.

THE life of Adolph Sapliir is so intimately
associated with the mission of the Church
of Scotland, and, after the "Disruption" of 1843,
with the mission of the Free Church of Scotland,
to the Jews at Pesth or Buda-pest in Hungary,
that it is necessary to give a short account of
the most remarkable early history of that mission,
in order to explain his preparation for his future
work. The more we consider the lives of men,
especicillv of those raised up for important purposes,
the more clearly do we see the Divine guidance,
even in minute affairs, in preparing them for the
work, for which they have been specially designed.
In his case the guidance is very clearly traceable.

2 THE FATHER OF THE JEWISH MISSION.

In the year 1837, Avhen there was the beginning
of a great religious revival in Scotland, the Lord
stirred up, in the hearts of many, earnest prayer for
Israel. '' In that year," said Dr. Andrew Bonar,"^
" when the meeting of the General Assembly was
near at hand, a goodly band of ihQ friends of Israel
consulted together, and a memorial was drawn up
by Mr. E. Wodrow and presented to the Assembly,
l^ressing on them the claims of that ancient nation.
The memorial was favourably received.''

The father of the Jewish mission was this Mr.
Wodrow of Glasgow. Long before the deputation
was sent out in 1839, as appeared after his death
from his private journal, he was accustomed to
devote whole days to fasting and prayer on behalf
of Israel. The hearts of others were kindled. A
widespread interest was awakened. He addressed
a most powerful " appeal to the children of Israel
in all the lands of their dispersion," which was
circulated extensively. His wife, after his death,
visited many of the Continental towns, where Jews
were most numerous, circulating this letter. It has
been recently republished with a preface by Dr.
Andrew Bonar. Mr. Wodrow died on June 27,
1843.

The immediate cause of the sending of this
deputation or commission of inquiry was a sug-
gestion of the late Dr. Candlish. The well-known

^ Since this was written, Dr. Andrew Bonar, beloved of
all who knew him, — so childlike in faith, and yet so able
and accomplished, — one of the warmest advocates of .Jewish
missions, has been suddenly taken to his rest.

FIELDS FOR JEWISH MISSIONS.

Eobert M'Cheyne was threatened with consumption,
and he had been ordered to seek a railder climate.

The Rev. Dr. Moody Stewart said at the Jewish
Mission Jubilee in 1889: — "It occurs to me as
vividly as if it had been yesterday, when I met
Dr. Candlish one afternoon in Ainslie Place, and
we spoke of Eobert M'Cheyne having been advised
to go abroad for his health. The conversion of
Israel, in which Dr. Candlish was deeply inter-
ested, had already been taken up by the General
Assembly, but without the adoption of any practical
steps. With the sanctified fertility of resource that
characterized him, he said to me, ' Don't you think
it might be well to send jM'Cheyne to Palestine to
inquire into the state of the Jews?' — to which I
cordially assented, and he followed it up, with all
his promptness and ardour."

Out of this suggestion there arose the idea of
a deputation to visit Palestine, and other countries
with Jewish populations, for the purpose of making
inquiries and investigations, and selecting the best
fields of labour. The deputation appointed at the
General Assembly of 1838, was composed of four
remarkable men, — two of them of age and experi-
ence. They were Dr. Keith of St. Cyrus, famed
for his book on fulfilled prophecy ; Dr. Black,
Professor of Divinity in Aberdeen ; Mr. M'Cheyne ;
and Mr. Andrew Bonar. The deputation sailed
from Dover on the morning of April 5, 1839.
The story of its labours was published in 1842,
under the title of A Narrative of a Mission

JESUITICAL PERSECUTIONS.

of Enquiry to the Jews. It excited great
interest at the time ; and, even now, after the
lapse of so many years and the immense increase
of knowledo^e as res^ards Palestine, this book holds
its place, as one of the most interesting records
of travel in the sacred territory. No travellers,
before or since, have entered so fully into the spirit
of the scenes, recalling easily and naturally, as they
visited them, the sacred impressions with which
they are associated. M'Cheyne's beautiful poem
on the lake of Galilee can never be forgotten.

The Church of Scotland had no idea of estab-
lishing a mission in any part of the Austrian
Empire, as its Government was at that time so
intolerant as to make any such attempt appear hope-
less. The deputation of inquiry did not therefore
even propose to visit Hungary, although it was well
known that there was a very large Jewish population
there. Hungary, with its dependencies, Tran-
sylvania and Croatia, contains altogether a popula-
tion of from fourteen to sixteen millions of people.
Almost the whole country embraced the prin-
ciples of the Eeformation at first, but terrible and
crushing persecutions arose, by which the Jesuits
nearly stamped out Protestantism. The number of
Protestants was reduced from an overwhelming
majority to a small minority of the population.
At present they are reckoned under three millions.
In 1841 the spirit of Kationalism had undermined
the Protestant Church.

P>ut God had other purposes, which in His

DR. BLACK'S ACCIDENT.

providence He accomplished in a wonderful way.
As the deputies were travelling on camels from
Egypt across to Palestiue, Dr. Black, falling asleep
on the back of his camel, slipped down on the
sand. " It seemed," says Dr. Bonar, speaking at the
Jubilee meeting of 1889, ''an ordinary accident, and
after returning home I met Dr. Guthrie, who said
to me, in his own humorous way : ' But tell me
about our old friend, the Professor from Aberdeen,
what kind of impression did he make on the
sand?'" He could not tell him much as to the
impression on the sand ; but it was that fall,
proving more serious in its effects than was thought
at the time, which led Dr. Black and Dr. Keith to
take the route homeward by the Danube. They
reached Pesth as mere passing travellers, but
resolved to make some inquiry as to the number
and state of the Jews in that city.

Strangely enough, the wife of the Archduke
Joseph, uncle to the Emperor, and Viceroy of
Hungary, by birth a Princess of the Protestant
House of Wlirtemburg, residing at that time in
her husband's (the Prince Palatine's) palace, was
expecting the arrival of some stranger, who would
bring with him a blessed influence to Hungary.
The Archduchess Maria Dorothea had been brought
to an earnest love of the truth, some years before,
through no human instrumentality. Having to pass
through the deep waters of affliction, in the death
of a much-loved son, she had betaken herself to the
Bible, and " in the Bible she met with Jesus." She

6 THE ARCHDUCHESS'S ANXIOUS HOUR.

was attached to Hungary, and became intensely
interested in its spiritual welfare. She stood alone,
" like a sparrow on the housetop,' as she used her-
self to say. Her eldest boy, who had become a
true Christian, was early removed from her. In
her solitude she prayed earnestly for a Christian
friend and counsellor. " The palace in which she
resided stands on an eminence, looking down on
the Danube flowing beneath, and on the city of
Pesth, on the opposite bank of the river. Her
private boudoir lay towards the front of the building.
There, in the deep embrasure of a window, she was
accustomed, day by day, to pour out her supplica-
tions to God — looking down on the scene below —
the city with its 100,000 inhabitants, and the vast
Hungarian plains stretching away behind it in the
distance. For about the space of seven years she
had been praying to God for the arrival of some
one who would carry the gospel to the people
around." "Sometimes her desire became so intense
that, stretching out her arms towards heaven, she
prayed almost in an agony of spirit that God
would send at least one messenger of the Cross to
Hungary." Dr. Keith learned afterwards from her
own lips that during the fortnight before she had
heard of his illness, she invariably awoke, night
after night, with the exception of once, in the
middle of the night, at the same hour, with a
strong and irrepressible conviction that something
was to happen to her. After a watchful and most
anxious hour, it passed away, when she had her

DR. KEITH'S ILLNESS.

usual and undisturbed rest, and hearing of the
seemingly dying minister of Christ at the hotel,
she said within herself, '* This is what was to
happen to me " : and from that night her sleep
was unbroken by any disturbing thought. In that
impression lay the key wdiereby a door was opened
in Pesth. When Dr. Keith recovered, and learned
from the Archduchess the story of her longings and
prayers, he had not much difficulty in seeing the
hand of God, plainly directing their journey, and
bringing them as Christ's messengers to Hungary.

Dr. Keitb lay for weeks in a state of extreme
prostration. " At one stage of his illness," he
relates, " I fainted away, I became insensible, w^hile
two men waited by my bedside to carry me away,
as soon as I should breathe my last. At this time the
only sigu of life w^as in the dimness of a mirror
held close to my face."^ The Archduchess came to
his bedside, and ministered to him with her ow^n
hands, and watched tenderly over him. As he
became better, he had ample opportunity of becom-
ing acquainted, from her, with the state of the Jews
in Hungary, and also with the religious w^ants of
Hungary itself. He received from her the assur-
ance that, should the Church of Scotland consent
to plant a mission in Pesth, she would protect it
to the utmost of her power.

The hand of God was surely manifest in all these

^ In Appendix A, we give a description of this illness and
the events accompanying it, as written by Dr. Keith himself
for the Sunday at Home of 1867.

PESTH MISSION RESOLVED UPON.

events. The fall from the camel of Dr. Black ; the
detention by illness of Dr. Keith in Pesth, which
there had not been the smallest intention of even
visiting, as the idea of a mission in Austria or
Hungary was considered out of the question ; the
prayers of the Archduchess and her expectation of
the arrival of some British missionary ; her discovery
of Dr. Keith and many conversations with him ; her
earnest desire that the mission should be established,
and her promises of protection to it — furnish a
chain of events which cannot be explained, apart
from the direct guidance of God. The most
sceptical would show only their own folly and
narrowness, in attempting to deny such guidance
in the circumstances. The origin of the mission
was not of man, but of God. The call resembled
that in the vision of the man of Macedonia to the
Apostle Paul, " Come over and help us."

This was clearly recognized by Dr. Keith. After
his recovery and return he urged the importance
of Pesth as a mission centre, — at first without much
success. But he urged it again and again, so that
some spoke of it as Dr. Keith's pest. He suc-
ceeded at last. The mission to Pesth was resolved
upon, and was begun, after the lapse of a year,
with far-reaching and blessed results to Adolph
and the Sapliir family, and the Jewish work-
throughout the world.

CHAPTER II.

THE PESTH MISSION.

"Eabbi" Duncan the First Missionary — His great Popularity
and Influence among Jews and Christians — Mrs. R.
Smith instructs the Daughters of the Archduchess, viz. the
present Queen of the Belgians and the Mother of the
present Queen of Spain — The Spirit of Inquiry.

THE first mission aiy to the Jews in Pesth was
a man whose fame is in all the Churches — Dr.
Duncan, or Eabbi Duncan, as he was afterwards
afi'ectionately called when Professor of Hebrew in
Edinburgh, regarding whose absence of mind many
strange and extraordinary tales are told, as of the
great Neander in Germany. He was not only a
great Hebrew scholar, but a man of profound philo-
sophic insight, who had been almost an infidel in
his earlier days, and who was the more powerful in
his defence of truth, on account of the difficulties
through which he had then passed. His thorough
knowledg-e of Hebrew was fitted to o;ain him
influence among the Jews, and he could converse

10 CORDIAL RECEPTION OF THE MISSION.

fluently in Latin, which was then much used in
conversation by the learned in Hungary, both
Jews and Christians. It was , even the language
of parliamentary debates. Dr. Duncan having
been set apart in Ghxsgow, in May, for this
mission work, reached his destination on August
21, 1841, accompanied by Mr. Smith and Mr.
Allen. Mr. Wingate arrived later. There was a
strange mysterious expectation of success from
the very beginning. " When," says Mr., now
Dr. Smith, " we took our departure for our future
home, we felt wafted along by the breath of
prayer."

They were received by the Archduchess with
great cordiality. She at once visited them, and
they were frequently guests at the Palace. Thus
their position was made secure. Without her pro-
tection, or rather that of her husband the Archduke
Joseph, the Palatine, they could not have remained
for a month. Even with that protection it would
have been difficult, as the position of a foreign
missionary or minister could not then be legally
recognized, had there not happened to be in Pesth
a number of English workmen, employed at the
time in building a bridge. Services were begun
for them, in a room prepared for the purpose. This
furnished an ostensible reason for the residence of
the missionaries. They dared not, at that period,
mention the name of the Archduchess in the
correspondence, as the authorities in Vienna would
have taken alarm. She, however, was constantly

'RABBV DUNCAN'S POPULARITY. 11

interviewed by them, and both she and the Palatine
knew well all they were doing. Mrs. Smith, wife
of one of the missionaries, was employed in teach-
ing two of her daughters English — one of them
now Queen of the Belgians, the other, the mother
of the present Queen of Spain. The Archduchess
w^as compelled by the Imperial law to bring them
up as Eoman Catholics, but she taught them in
the Scriptures, and sought earnestly, and with
much prayer, to impress on them the truths of
the gospel.

Services were held on the Lord's Day, in English,
and a number of Jews and others soon began to
attend them, partly for the purpose of perfecting
their knowledge of English. Dr. Duncan very soon
got into intercourse with distinguished Jews, in-
cluding the Chief Kabbi, and also with leading
pastors of the Protestant Hungarian Church, and
even with influential priests of the Romish Church.
He became engaged in keen controversy with
Jewish theologians. He acquired great respect
among the learned men of the Jews, on account
of his intimacy with their language and literature.
He took an interest in their schools, and attended,
by special invitation, the public examination,
taking part in it, and giving prizes. He gave
for prizes two Hebrew^ Bibles and two Torahs,
which being by far the best prizes given, were
much admired, especially as coming from the
Eng^lish " Geistlicher." The Doctor also gave
the head-master an English Bible, including of

PROGRESS OF DR. DUNCAN'S WORK.

course, the New Testament. The Chief Eabbi
(Schwab) was inclined to be most friendly. Dr.
Duncan and all his assistants were invited to
attend the initiation of a young Jew. Dr. Duncan
was also invited by the Chief Eabbi to the
marriage of his daughter with a young Eabbi,
and the bridegroom expressed his delight at
seeing a man of whose fame he had heard so
much.-^

Dr. Duncan wrote from Pesth in regard to his
work — " It has not been with Jews, but with Deists
we have had to do. The main effort has been
to maintain the true and proper inspiration of
Scripture, in opposition to the ignis fatuus of
rationalizing mysticism ; everything great and
good, they say, is a development of the human
mind progressing to its perfection, which as it
does under a Divine government, every such ad-
vance may be called a Divine revelation."

The close connection which Dr. Duncan showed
to exist between the Old and New Testaments,
attracted especial attention among the Jews. The
notion had been almost universal that the Jews
had one Bible, and the Christians another. It was
no uncommon thing to hear a Christian and a Jew
dispute, on the comparative merits of the two
Bibles. It was interesting to witness the surprise
of the Jews when they heard that St. Paul based
his system upon Moses, found language for his

^ For further information as to the great impression made
by Dt-. Duncan, see Appendix B,

THE SPIRIT OF INQUIRY. l3

aspirations in the writings of David, and was
cheered by the bright visions of the future glory
of his nation, as portrayed by Isaiah. All this
roused the spirit of inquiry. His sermons were
listened to with great attention, and produced no
small effect. Besides this, his conversations, his
simple, earnest unfolding of the deepest truths,
were much appreciated. The influence which he
acquired in a short time was extraordinary. Mr.
Wingate wrote : — Few stations are more difficult
of access from the nature of the laws, and few
require more peculiar qualifications, when once in
the country ; eminent Christian prudence, native
courteousness of manner, with that self-denial which
enables a man to exhibit aflPability at all times and
seasons, to men who may come on the most trifling
and unimportant matters, with such an amount of
learning and acquirements as place him, in secular
learning, on a footing with the most accomplished
worldlings. Such qualities meet in Dr. Duncan,
and they have been so appreciated and blessed by
the Lord, and ivcdls of prejudices have been so
broken down in one short year, that his society is
courted, and his influence in the city has already
become great for piety and learning.

Dr. Duncan's stay did not last very long. In
a year he had to get leave of absence on account of
failure of health, when he went to Italy to recruit.
After his return, and a short second period at
Pesth, he was recalled to Scotland to become the
first Professor of Hebrew in the Free Church of

U GOOD IMPRESSIONS MADE.

Scotland, which had just been constituted. The
impression he had made did not pass away. The
colleagues whom he left, the Kev. E. Smith and
the Eev. W. Wingate, were well fitted to sustain
it. A visit of the Rev. Charles Schwartz, well
known as a missionary to his Jewish kindred, who
preached in German, produced a great effect, and
the work, which had almost from the very first had
most remarkable results, continued to extend and
prosper. The impression Dr. Duncan, had made
was not forgotten by Jews or Gentiles, Protestants
or Roman Catholics.

15

CHAPTER III.

THE SAPHIR FAMILY.

The Three Brothers — The Father of Adolph, Israel Saphir —
His Learning and great Influence in Hungary — The Simul-
taneous Conversion of Father and Son — Adolph's Avowal
of his Faith' -Reminiscences of Adolph's Cliildhood by his
Sister — Dr. Keith's Report — References to Adolph's lather
— The Saphir Family.

ONE family began to be frequently referred to
in the letters of the missionaries. It was
a family well known in Hungary, and greatly re-
spected by the Jews. For two generations at least
it had been much distinguished. The grandfather
of Adolph Saphir was learned in the Jewish law,
and had much influence among his co-religionists.
He had three sons, one of whom became famous
through all Germany as a wit and poet, being by
many considered the fitting successor of the re-
nowned Jean Paul Eichter. His name was Moritz,
originally Moses, Gottlieb Saphir.^ He is recognized
as one of the great literary men of the period, and
long biographies appear of him in most German
biographical dictionaries. His wit was so sharp

1 For an interesting sketch, written at the time of his death,
in a journal which he founded, and owned to the last, see
Appendix C.

16 ADOLPIl DESCRIBES HIS EAT HER.

and pungent that he had to leave several States,
in which he gave offence to the petty rulers.
Israel Saphir, the father of Adolph, was the eldest
of the three brothers. He was a merchant, origin-
ally a wool-broker — a man of good education, of a
studious nature, well up in Hebrew and in Hebrew
law, and accomplished in many departments of
knowledge and science. He was most active as
an educationist. He projected and carried out an
educational institute in Pesth, with a staff' of eight
professors, in which the children of the better
classes were educated. Adolph thus describes his
father — " My father, Israel Saphir, a brother of the
w^ell-known writer, M. G. Saphir, was a merchant.
He was a good Hebrew scholar, and had intimate
knowledge of German, French, and English litera-
ture. He also jDursued with zeal, philosophical and
theological studies, and rendered much service to
the cause of education in Hungary." The third
brother was also a man of ability, father of one of
the PTcatest linoaiists of the day who is now at the
head of the Oriental University Institute at Woking.
Adolph's father was well known among all the
Jews of Hungary. When Dr. Keith lay ill in Pesth,
he made especial inquiry for some one of respect-
ability, intelligence, and candour, on whom he could
thoroughly depend for information respecting the
state of the Jews. He was at once emphatically
told that there was no man like Saphir, from whom
he could get the requisite information — that he
was looked up to by the Jews as the most learned

THE FATHER OF ADOLPH. 17

person amoDg them. Accordingly he saw him,
and had much conversation with him. His habits
were literary. He was a master of German litera-
ture. When the mission was commenced, he had
just begun to study English. Actuated chiefly by
a desire to advance his knovvledo^e of Eno-lish, he
appeared regularly at the services of Dr. Duncan,
leading his son Adolph, then eleven or twelve years
of age, by the hand. Gradually the truth reached
his heart, and he recognized in Jesus of Nazareth
the Messiah foretold by the prophets. His little
son, with an intellect always keen, became con-
vinced at the same time ; — both, however, being
reticent on the subject. The silent influences were
brought to light in a very unexpected way, and by
the action of the son. One morning Adolph re-
quested his father to allow him to ask the blessing
at breakfast. On permission being given, he poured
out an earnest, short prayer, in the name of the
Lord Jesus Christ. The consternation in the family,
and shortly thereafter in the Jewish quarter, where
they lived, was great. " By and by," says Mr.
Wingate, who gives this account, *• we heard that
the Jews were saying that the Holy Ghost had
fallen on Saphir's son, and that he expounded the
Scripture as they had never heard it expounded
before." Adolph himself makes this reference —
" Through the instrumentality of Scotch mission-
aries my father saw the truth as it is in Christ
Jesus, and was received into the Christian Church
in 1843, at the age of sixty- three years. I, at that

IS REMINISCENCES OF

time a lad in my twelfth year, was the first of our
family to accept the gospel."

Mrs. Schonberger, nee Johanna Saphir — the only
surviving sister of Dr. Saphir — has written for us
the following reminiscences of his childhood : —

Adolph Saphir was by nature of an unusually
delicate constitution, and very often his parents
were in great anxiety as to the way and means to
keep the child alive. After a few years of great
care and studied attention he seemed to get on
fairly well. Adolph was considered a very good-
lookiug child, with a fair, transparent complexion,
beautiful, large, blue eyes, full of intelligence and
expression. His father was devoted to him, and,
as he occupied a prominent position at one of the
first and best private schools at Buda-pest, he w^as
most anxious to send his little son Adolph to that
school at the age of four years, not so much for
learning, but simply for the purpose of amusement,
to divert his active little mind.

The teacher, however, soon became aware of
the fact that the child was not only amusing him-
self, but was taking in every ivord he heard. To
the great astonishment of the teacher, the child
was able to answer all his questions.

The brilliant result ought to have made his
father remove him at once from school ; but this
was not done, and his great mental activity there,
at such an age, may in some measure account for
his nervousness in later life. From that time

ADOLPH SAPHIRS CHILDHOOD. 19

little Adolpli was considered quite a genius —
an example to all the children. He was the first
and best scholar in the school, passing all examin-
ations with honour, and getting the first prizes, to
the great joy and satisfaction of his teachers, and
also to the astonishment of the audiences present
at the examinations.

He passed the sixth form at the age of nine
years, and his father removed him from school, as
this was the highest and last class. But now a
great difiiculty arose, as to how and in what method
to proceed with his education — he being still too
young to attend the University.

In the meantime little Adolph was as anxious
as his father. He was thirsting after more pro-
gress in all branches of hio^her knowleds^e, and
a teacher was found who was a master in Greek
and Latin, and all that was fitted to arouse his
mind and intellect. After private study with this
teacher for two years, he was ready to pass an
examination, at the Gymnasium of Bada-pest.
The result w^as a great triumph. The professors
were startled with his knowledge, at so early an
age, and could not say enough in regard to his
abilities, uncommon intelligence, and impressiveness
for everything good and noble.

At the age of eight he wrote German poems,
which, to the regret of the family, were lost.

The most strikino- features in his character

o

were his gentleness and humility, and his strong
affection for his parents, especially for his mother.

20 ADOLPWH CURIOUS ACCIDENT.

He never gave cause for dissatisfaction, and thus
lie was never punished in any way. The writer of
this sketch only remembers one occasion, when his
mother seemed displeased with him. Noticing it,
he suddenly knelt down before her, imploring her
to forgive him, with the most solemn promise that
he would be very good in future. This was a
most affecting and touching incident, not to be
easily forgotten.

He was of such a refined and delicate mind that
anything which was in the least contrary to his
impression of right, young as he was, made him
feel quite miserable and sad. He suffered, during
his early studies, from an accident. A heavy
weight of one of the large clocks, that come
from the Black Forest, fell on his head, when he
was alone in the room. He was found lying on
the ground, quite stunned by the heavy blow.
Fortunately his tutor, who happened to be also a
doctor, came to the rescue, and after some time he
seemed himself again. This accident, the writer of
this sketch thinks, must have told on him all his
life long, as his head was especially delicate and the
cause of suffering.

Little Adolph was favoured and loved by Jews
and Gentiles, and even now he is remembered and
honoured in his native town, after nearly halt a
century. His sister concludes her sketch by noticing
his studies at Berlin, and his connection with the
Irish Jewish Mission at Hamburg — events to which
we shall refer afterwards — and then adds : — Little

THE GREAT MOVEMENT IN PEST IT. 21

Adolph hardly associated when young with any
of his school-fellows. He was shy and very timid,
easily frightened when the boys were rough and
rude — and he thus rather kept aloof. After his
baptism some of his little Jewish school-fellows
mocked and ridiculed him for becoming a Christian.
He, however, replied with so much dignity and
decision that they were soon silenced, and became
in fact ashamed of their attacks.

And now we come to the great movement in
Pesth, and its effect on the Saphir family. We
have spoken of the deep impression made by the
services and conversations of Dr. Duncan and his
coadjutors, Messrs. Wingate and Smith. Dr. Smith
thus describes the early progress ^ : — About mid-
summer in 1842, the little company was greatly
quickened by a visit from various Christian friends,
natives of different countries, who without pre-
vious concert arrived in Pesth on the same day,
and indeed by the same steamer. This remarkable
coincidence was evidently of the Lord, and it was
resolved to turn it to account. For fourteen days
we continued together in prayer and thanksgiving.
It was a time of special refreshing from the presence
of the Lord. We remembered the parting words :
"Go ye into all the world ; and lo, I am with you

1 The Rev. Dr. Robert Smith, now of Corsack in Dumfries-
shire, then one of the missionaries, wrote a series of excellent
articles on the mission, in the Sunday at Home of 1866. Our
quotations from him are chiefly from those articles, but some
from letters written at the time,

DR. KEITH'S REPORT.

alway." And as we communed one with another in
the Word, and poured out our hearts at the rnercy-
seat, we felt that the Lord Jesus was indeed in the
midst of us, walking among the candlesticks as of
old, and the hearts of all were greatly enlarged.
The well thus opened in the desert continued to
flow, and to follow us in our way as a living
stream. From that time a manifest blessino; bes^an
to descend. German services were established,
which were attended by great numbers of Jews,
and a powerful impression was made. This im-
pression deepened week by week, and as winter
approached the work of conversion began.

It was about this time that the visit of the Rev.
Charles (afterwards Dr.) Schwartz took place, to
which we have referred. He remained for some
time preaching regularly in German. Many Jews
came to hear him, and the impressions already
made on the Saphir family were much deepened.

Dr. Keith said in his report to the General
Assembly of the Free Church of Scotland in
1844:—

While I was in Pesth an aged and respectable
Jew was specially recommended to me as one of
the most learned among them, and the most capable
of giving every requisite information concerning
his brethren. He conversed freely on the history
of the Jews in Hungary, and referred me to the
best authorities on that subject, which he at first
imagined was the object of my inquiry. But he was
at first more reluctant, than other Jews general! v

CONVERSION OF FATHER AND SON. 23

were, to speak of their religious opinions, and it was
only after a preliminary conversation that I could
get him at all to enter on the question of the
Messiahship of Jesus. More than in most other
instances, it was necessary, in dealing with him, to
become as a Jew to the Jews. But when the
testimony of the prophets was brought plainly
before him, he was deeply moved, and said, " It is
very hard to give up in old age opinions cherished
from youth, and never doubted." He soon became
an earnest inquirer. Having thrice missed me that
day, he called the fourth time, of his own accord,
at my lodgings, on the evening before I left
Pesth.

The father and his son Adolph were convinced
at the same time that Jesus was the Messiah, and
when lie became convinced, the patriarch never hesi-
tated as to the course to be taken ; but he delayed
his baptism in his anxiety to bring his whole family
with him. His son Philipp, of whom we shall have
much to say afterwards, was baptized on April 4,
1843, by one of the chief Hungarian pastors,
the Rev. Paul Tor ok, who was very friendly with
the missionaries and baptized all the converts, it
not being lawful for foreigners to perform minis-
terial offices for Austrian subjects. Philipp had been
impressed by the preaching of Mr. Schwartz, and
he wrote to him expressing the joy that he felt
in being admitted into the Church of Christ. But
Philipp's conversion took place when he and
two others were affectionately ministering to Mr.

24 REFERENCES TO ADOLPirS FATHER.

Wino^ate, who had met with an accident, and re-
quired to be attended to, day and night. He and
Alfred Edersheim and another volunteered to take
turns in this loving service, and Philipp, deeply-
troubled in mind, sought counsel from Mr. Win-
gate, and suddenly saw and rejoiced in the light.
Old Mr. Saphir had everything to lose, but he
counted all things but loss for the excellency to
be found in Christ. Dr. Smith says : — He was
perhaps the most learned Jew^ in Hungary, and
held in universal respect for probity and upright-
ness of character. He was in truth a sort of
Gamaliel in the nation. He was the bosom friend
of the Chief Rabbi, and the most leading and
trusted man in every benevolent and useful under-
takino\ A hundred other conversions could not

o

have produced the same impression as his.

Mr. Wingate, in writing before the baptism, thus
referred to him : —

The Lord has remarkably visited Mr. Saphir's
family, and we look forward to their being the first
who will be called to profess publicly their faith in
Christ, and obedience to Him. This will be a
severe blow to the kingdom of Satan, which he has
so long held undisturbed in Judaism. Mr. Saphir
is known throughout the whole community, and
the rumours of his conversion to the truth have
been shakino; the Jews here, like the heavino-s of
a coming earthquake. For man)' years his un-
blemished character, extensive learning, not only
as to Jewish but ofeneral literature, having at the

JREFEBEXCKS TO ADOLPH'S FATHEB.

cio-e of fifty-four mastered the Englisli language for
no other reason than that he might be able to read
Shakespere in the original; — all these circumstances,
combined with his ^^atriotic endeavour to raise his
nation, by the erection and formation of the largest
Jewish school in Hungary, had endeared him to
tlie Jews. His opinion was, as it were, law ; and
that he should be about to declare Judaism, which
he had studied for forty years, to h^ a way of deatli
and not of life was sufficiently startling. He is
about sixty years of age, but his mind is full of
youthful vigour, and he has great energy of
character. Dr. Duncan's many conversations have
greatly impressed him, and the conflict with the
natural enmity and unbelief of the heart has
been long and deep ; but the Lord was deepening
the Word, and now we commend him and his
interesting family — of wife, three sons, and three
daughters, and a Jewish servant — to the jDrayers of
God's children.

Some little time ago, when Mr. Saphir's state of
mind was talked of among the Jews, the princij^al
Kabbi here, his former intimate friend, preached
from Isaiah liii., explaining the passage after the
manner of the Jews, and denouncing in fearful
terms the man who would give up his children to
those who wxre outside of their community, viz. the
Christians. Mr. Saphir was in the synagogue at the
time, and knew that all this was levelled at him.
But this tirade, though it exposed him to the
enmity of the Jews, confirmed him in liis deter-

26 HIGH CHARACTER OF ISRAEL SAPHIR.

mination to hold fast to the Lord Jesus. Soon
after, before the annual meeting for the election of
directors to the Jewish Seminary, the Eabbi sent
privately to inform him that it was the intention
of the Jews to expel him, and begging him, if his
mind was quite made up to leave the synagogue,
to send in his resignation. He accordingly resigned
his oliice of principal Director to the school, which
he had so many years watched over and superin-
tended. He has suffered much at the hands of his
brethren As in the case of Job, they used to rise
up at his approach, but some dared now even to
revile him and mock him. His high character has
silenced many, and the Eabbi has declared, that
notwithstanding all, Mr. Saphir is an honourable
man. Eelatives and friends weep, and try all means
to effect a change in his purpose, but in vain.

It may be mentioned here that Dr. Schwab, the
Eabbi of Buda-pest, had communications with him,
as long as he lived. He was accustomed frequently
to meet him at a private room of one of the
booksellers, in that city.

Mr. Israel Saphir's wife, of Bohemian extraction,
nSe Henrietta Bondij, was an attractive woman of
gentle disposition, to whom her son Adolph bore
much resemblance. She also, after some time,
became convinced of the Messiahship of Jesus, and
declared her readiness to follow her husband and to
profess Christianity ; but she was in much perplexity
about the worldly difficulties, in which open profes-
sion of faith by baptism might involve them. The

THE SAPHIR FAMILY

whole family became simultaneously influenced,
except an elder son by a former marriage. For six
months the father had delayed his own baptism,
that he might bring his family with him. Dr.
Smith, writing in Feb. 1843, thus describes their
state, and refers touchingly to the young Adolph : —
The eldest daughter we believe to be now a
Christian. She is under regular instruction for
baptism. Her little brother, eleven and a half years
of age (but of small stature), receives instruction at
the same time. I feel confident that this child, if he
is not being prepared for speedy removal to another
world, is being prepared for much good in this. He
seems to have a peculiar delight in prayer. Hours
together, w^e have reason to believe, have been some-
times spent by him in this exercise. He and his
sister have little prayer-meetings together, on behalf
of the other members of the family. Nor have their
prayers been unheard. The mother is now anxiously
inquiring how her soul can be saved. The remain-
ing two sisters have of their own accord offered
themselves for instruction. The father stands fast,
and grows in strength from day to day. The
power of Divine grace has been wonderfully mani-
fested in him. He has been universally looked up
to as the most learned Jew in Hungary, and lias
possessed so great weight of probity and character,
that the Jews have been accustomed to regard him
with feelings of the deepest respect, and even
veneration. Yet, standing at the very head of his
countrymen, and almost idolized by them, he has

28 ISRAEL SAPIUR'S GBOWTH IN GRACE.

been enabled through grace to count all things
but loss for the excellency to be found in Christ
Jesus.

We had for some time watched with intense
interest the progress of his mind. At length we
felt ourselves justified, about a week ago, to request
an interview, and to call upon him, in the name of
the Lord Jesus, to come forth from among his
brethren, and make a public profession of Christ's
name. The way in which he responded to this
call, and the views which he was led to express,
filled us with unfeigned delight. We have reason
to anticipate that his baptism will produce a great
sensation among the Jews, not only here, but
throughout Hungary. His high reputation for
learning and uprightness shuts out at once the idea
of incapacity or interested motive. That he is con-
vinced and that he is capable of judging, are points
which, whatever they may say in the heat of their
anger, they will not be able to set aside to the
satisfaction of their own minds. The great attain-
ments of Mr, Saphir, the position Avhich he has
occupied, and other circumstances, have impressed
us deeply with the importance of his being publicly
employed by the Church. Moreover, as he is quite
familiar with the Greek and Eoman classics, and is
a thorough master in all Jewish learning, we might,
with his assistance, be enabled, with much advan-
tao'e, to train up young men in immediate contact
Avith the work, who might afterwards be stationed
in different parts of tlie country.

L>9

CHAPTER IV.

BAPTISM OF THE SAPHIR HOUSEHOLD.

Mr. Saphir, his Wife and Daughters and Adolph [baptized in
June 1843 — Crowded Assembly of Jews and others — Im-
pressive Address of the Father — Secret First Communion
— " Sound of the noiseless steps " — Earnestness of Young
Adolph — Impression in Hungary and Germany - —
Discussion in the Press — Striking Letter of Adolph' s
Father.

THE household, consisting of father, sou, wife,
and three daughters (Philipp having been
baptized before, as we have mentioned, on his
departure for Carlsruhe to be trained as a teacher),
were baptized by Pastor Torok, in the Hungarian
Reformed church, on Wednesday, June 7, 1843.
Dr. Smith gives a graphic account of the whole
scene : —

All these, to the best of our discernment, had been
made partakers of the grace of the Lord Jesus ; His
glorious Name be praised ! — a whole family. How
seldom such a sio'ht even in the most Christian

o

land ! It is the Lord's doing, and wondrous in our
eyes. On the morning of the baptism, the children
were up, between three and four, for prayer. The
sound of their sweet voices, at that early hour,
gladdened and strengthened the parents' hearts.

30 THE FATHERS IMPRESSIVE ADDRESS.

At his baptism, the father delivered an address,
powerfully conceived and expressed, in which he
gave solemn testimony, not only to the truths of
the gospel, but also to the experience of it in his
own soul. Such a testimony had never been
borne in Pesth since the days of the Eeformation.
He bore wdtness also to the change which he had,
with his own eyes, seen effected in his wife and
children. Pointing to them, as they stood around
him, he declared the Spirit of God and the truth
of God to have been the means of the spiritual
trausformation. Altoofether, the sio^ht was most
affectino'. To hear of an inward struororle between

o o o

grace and sin, issuing through the power of the
Holy Ghost in a new^ birth of the soul, and that
this, and not a mere change of opinion and of
outward profession, was a true conversion from
Judaism to Christianity, was something for w^hich
the crowded assembly of Jews and others were
quite unprepared. Many Jews and Gentiles wxre
moved to tears, and not a few were led to inquire
after the w^ay of salvation from that hour. There
w\as a power, and simplicity, and truth in the
words of the patriarchal Jew% as he stood in the
midst of his family, and testified for himself and
for them what God had done for their souls. It
midit be seen, reflected in the riveted attention of
all present, that these doctrines w^ere no trifles !
but that they entered into the very life of the
soul. The attention and death-like stillness of the
audience showed the depth of the impression then

BAPTISM OF THE SAPHIR HOUSEHOLD. 31

being made. Especially was every breath hushed
when the moment of the great transition arrived, in
which, by the washing with w^ater in the name of
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, this
Jewish family, one by one, were publicly engrafted
into Christ. It is true, there was no transition
here from death to life. But the life which had
been already communicated by Word and Spirit,
now emerged into publicity before the eyes of God,
of angels, and of men. In that hour a covenant
was openly and irrevocably entered into, before
many witnesses, between God and these children
of Abraham, wdtli pledges of mutual fidelity and
love. In a sense — and that a high and important
one — they came there as Jew^s, they returned home
rejoicing as Christians.

We spent the evening of the day with the
family. The joy, the peace, the love among them
I shall not attempt to describe. It was the most
lovely sight I ever beheld. The zeal of the father
kindling anew and burning with more than usual
brightness ; perfect peace resting on the but lately
care-worn countenance of the mother ; the eldest
daughter finding an outlet to her thankfulness and
joy only in tears, and the little Benjamin of the
family — Adolph — the first among them who had
seen the Lord, hanging on his beloved teachers,
the very picture of a happy child ; — such a scene
was life to our souls.

The servant of the family looked on bewildered,
and wondering what all this meant. On that night

SECRET FIRST COMMUNION.

impressions were made oii her heart, which issued
later in her conversion. After praying with them,
and exhorting them to continue steadfast in the
faith, walkinof tooether in the comfort and love of
the Spirit, and in the fellowship of all the holy
brethren, we took our departure.

Such a Avell of living w^ater could not be
opened up amidst the dreary wastes of the Jewish
community, and I may add of the Christian also,
without attracting much observation. For a time,
even all opposition was stayed. Men felt that a
power was at work which they could not com-
prehend, and which they were afraid to resist. Into
not a few hearts the truth silently found its way ;
in some cases resulting in a manifestly saving-
change ; in others producing impressions, the nature
of which the day of decision alone will declare. I
shall never forget the occasion of the first dispensa-
tion of the Lord's Supper, soon after this baj)tism,
when the majority of those present wxre Jews.
The meeting was held in an upper room, secretly,
for fear of the Jews, and of the intolerant Austrian
Government. Almost as soon as the service began
a strange m}^sterious presence filled the place. A
hushed silence fell on the little company, only
occasionally broken by the suppressed sob of some
burstino[ heart. AVhen the bread was broken and
the wine poured forth, we felt as if for the time the
conditions of the earth had passed away. We felt
that the Kisen Lord was indeed present in the
midst of us. And as we gazed upon Him, we saw

PROGRESS OF MISSION WORK. 33

the print of the nails, and the wound in His pierced
side. An Irish barrister, Mr. Eawlins, who, w^ith
his whole family, had been converted a short time
before, and who afterwards became a clergyman of
the Church of England, said to me on the follow-
ing day — " I thought I heard the sound of His
noiseless steps as He passed up and down in
the midst of us."

From that time the work went forward with great
power. The little company of believers walked
together in the fear of God, and in the unity of
mutual love. And they testified all around to what
they had seen and heard. The large Jewdsli com-
munity of Pestli was perplexed, hot knowing what
these things might mean. Indeed, for a time, the
whole city was shaken. In public places of resort,
the conversation of all classes turned on the strange
things that had come to their ears.

Dr. Smith continues : — These were blessed times
worth living for. Within a few months about twenty
persons were added to the Lord, and others received
a new baptism of the Spirit. A general interest
was aw^akened through the city. Even in the
coffee-houses conversation was turned to the subject
of religion. Wherever the converts went they
carried the savour of Christ with them. Their
demeanour was modest and unassuming, but what
w\^s nearest their hearts could not be hidden.
Their daily intercourse with each other w\as like
that of a large united family, and w^as characterized
in a remarkable dey-ree bv unanimitv, love, and

34 A BLESSED SEASON.

mutual confidence. When any cause of difi'erence
arose among them, they were wont to meet to-
gether and lay the matter before the Lord, praying
and conversing alternately, till they again saw, eye
to eye. Thus their light shone out on all around,
and men were forced to take knowledo^e of them
that Jesus dwelt among them of a truth.

In those days we were visited by many Christian
brethren from various countries, who had heard
that the Lord had visited this people. It is
a curious fact that several of these, quite apart
from each other, gave expression to the same
idea, — that they felt as if sojourning for a season
in one of the early Apostolic Churches. I re-
member the remark made to me by one of them,
that he would not be taken aback nor think it
strange, should a letter from Paul or from Peter
be handed in, by next morning's post. These
were days of heaven upon earth. Sometimes I
felt as if the ground were no longer solid under
my feet.

It is of special interest to notice the strong
character and Christian ardour of Adolph at this
early period of life. He was in a manner the
leader of the movement. This zeal and decision
burned with intensity all through his ministry
in after years, and gave him such power as an
almost Apostolic ambassador of Christ. Dr. Smith
thus speaks of him : — Adolph visited, the other
day, a Jewess of his acquaintance, who is also a
neighbour. He spoke to her about her soul — of

EARNESTNESS OF YOUNG ADOLPH. 35

lier state by nature, and need of salvation. She
said that all the neighbours marked a great change
in the Saphir family ; that they seemed now so
happy. " Yes," said Adolph, "we are happy because
we have got reconciliation with God through the
blood of His Son. We have peace in our con-
sciences ; and that makes us happy." The con-
versation ended in his engaging with her in prayer.
His father and he seem to have exchanged with
one another the characteristics belonoino- to their
respective ages, or rather retaining the proper
characteristics of youth and age — to have com-
municated, the one to the other — the child impart-
ing to the father the simplicity of childhood — the
father imparting to the child almost the maturity
of age. One beautiful and touching illustration
of this we remark in the conversations they have
with each other, like brother with brother, on
the Sabbath evenings, over the truths they have
been hearing in the English service, — in attending
ujDon which they find great delight.

Dr. Duncan, who had been away for a time from
Pesth on account of health, returned in the summer
of 1843. He wrote in regard to the Saphirs : —
Mrs. Saphir we met in Vienna, with two of her
daughters, whom she was conducting to a school
at Kornthal, in Wiirtemburg, for the education of
teachers. On her countenance there sparkled a
joy which I had never seen there before. In fact,
formerly she always looked miserable. Her talents,
which are of a homely but useful and motherly

3G DR. DUNCAN'S ACCOUNT OF THE SAPHIBS.

kind, have also received a wonderful expression
through the force of truth. Philipp Saphir, an
elder son, is gone to Carlsruhe in Wurtemburg,
to be educated for a teacher. The change pro-
duced in him by the power of Christianity appears
to have had a very strange influence on those
who knew him before, who said they formerly
despised him, as a foolish and disgraceful lad, but
now could not help admiring him. I have seen
some letters which he sent to his father. They
seemed rather the production of an aged and
experienced Christian, with a good deal of the
faith, naivete, and pleasant quaintness, which dis-
tinguished the style of the Puritans. Little A.
is still a charming boy. He know^s English pretty
well, and has during our absence prepared for
me the books of Joshua and Judges in Hebrew.
His father tells me, that sometimes he continues
for a whole hour in prayer, the tears streaming
from his eyes. He finds opportunity of speaking
of Christ to Jewesses, who invite the child to
their houses. Though treated by us as a man,
and, no doubt, by them with foolish admiration,
we have not seen one trait in him inconsistent
with childlike simplicity and modesty.

A great door w^as opened among literary young-
men — students of philosophy, medicine, and the-
ology. This success excited much persecution.
The Jews organized, means to kee]) their brethren
from visiting the missionaries. They also tried
to get the authorities to interfere. Several articles

IMPRESSION IN HUNGARY AND GERMANY

appeared iu the Jaden Zeitnng, published at
Leipzig, attacking the mission. A pamphlet was
distributed in Pesth against it. A notice appeared
in the well-known Augsburg Allgemeine Zeitung,
accusing the missionaries at Pesth of alluring, by
money and all kinds of promises, the very dregs
of the people, and also of interfering with the
Roman Catholics. This last charge was intended
to incite the Government to expel them, as all
Protestant work among Roman Catholics was then
strictly forbidden. These determined efforts to
destroy the mission, testified to the great effect it
was producing.

The conversion of Mr. Sapliir and his family
caused a great sensation among the Jews, who
knew that as a Jew he had been remarkable for
honesty and wisdom, and who could not believe
that in becoming a Christian he was a deceiver.
The Scriptures were therefore read in many Jewish
houses with avidity. Christianity became a subject
of study and conversation in Jewish families, and
the missionaries found themselves too few to over-
take the inquirers. It may be noted that Mr.
Saphir's prayers were usuall}^ in Hebrew, and
the words of the Psalter were constantly used,
adapted to the special circumstances, and full of
the original fire and force. Within about a year
and a half from the establishment of the mission,
thirty-five baptisms had taken place. These bap-
tisms were conducted, as mentioned before, by the
superintendent minister of the Eeformed Church

38 ISRAEL SAPHIRS LETTER.

of Hungary, Pastor Paul Torok. The iufluence
of the mis.^ion was felt remarkably in quickening
many of the clergy and their people, who had been
sunk in rationalism.

We give here an extract from a letter of old
Mr. Saphir, w^hich breathes the simple Christian
character of the man, and testifies to the influence
of his conversion on the Jews. It is dated Pesth,
April 11, 1844, and addressed to the Rev. C.
Schwartz : —

AVe have tolerably much to do, and the Lord
is still pleased to countenance our labours. One
veiy important feature in the mission here is tlie
change that the feelings of the Jews have under-
gone, since the missionaries settled at Pesth.
Jews, without being shocked or wounded in their
feelings, can now be addressed about the most
important truths of the gospel, and they even
quietly and calmly begin to consider with tlieir
families, whether they should embrace Christianity
or not. I can assure you (I humbly trust you
won't believe that I am mentioning this out of
self-love and vain-glory) that since I publicly
professed Jesus as my Messiah, a new era has
begun in the history of the Jews of Pesth, yea,
even of Hungary. They were accustomed to look
upon me, whether rightly or wrongly I do not
say, as one w^ell acquainted with their own litera-
ture, and somewhat versed even in profane science.
The Rabbi himself confirmed the people in this
opinion, since he seemed to prefer my acquaint-

EFFECT OF HIS CONVERSION. 39

ance to any other, and was always anxious to
show publicly how much he esteemed me. What
will the poor man do now ? Can he at once
despise and calumniate that man whom he shortly
before publicly exalted and honoured, — and why ?
Simply because I have embraced Christianity. And
the uneducated people, again and again, put the
c[uestion. Must we believe that the same Saphir,
who we w^ere told even yesterday was a learned
man, has at once become an ignorant one ; or
that the same man who was, all his lifetime, an
honest man, and whom we knew for thirty years
as a sincere man, has suddenly turned out a
deceiver and hypocrite ?

All these conditions which, in the first moment
of excitement and surprise, were overlooked, are
now more coolly and impartially weighed ; the
more — as they clearly see that we have not only
professed Christ with our lips, but cannot deny,
as I humbly trust, that we have been changed, —
a new and living principle having been put into
our hearts ; so that while, six months back, all
with one accord calumniated, contemned, despised
us ; now they are divided amongst themselves, and
many begin to think that Saphir has really been
converted, and to look at one another in surprise.
I know all this from good authority ; and now, let
me ask you : — Ma)^ we not hope that Christ will
still more be glorified, and His kingdom still more
advanced amongst us 1 God is my witness, this
is the only thing, viz. Christ's glory, that fills my

40 THE MISSION CAUSE ADVAXGING.

heart with unspeakable joy. Do not believe that I
have mentioned this to you out of love to myself,
or because I believe that I have done anything in it.
I know that there is nothing good in me, and that
we all come short, before that God who tries the
reins and searches the hearts — yea, I pray daily
that the Lord may free me more and more from
selfishness, and fill me with true humility ; yet,
not unto us, but unto His l)lessed Name be all
glory and praise for ever.

41

CHAPTER V.

INFLUENCE OF THE COURT.

The Archduke and Archduchess foster tlie Mission — They
encourage the sending of Evangelists all through Hungary
— The Archduke's Peaceful Death in 184:7 — Subsequent
persecution of the Archduchess — Her Death in 1855.

DURING these remarkable events, the mission
was constantly under the fostering care of
the Archduchess and her husband, the Palatine.
Thus the representatives of the Austrian Govern-
ment, which vras so bigoted and oppressive, became
its chief protectors. This was a most wonderful
fact. The Archduchess frequently invited the mis-
sionaries to the Palace, and rejoiced in their work
and encouraged them in it. Her care was constant,
or they could not have gone on. " She was," says
Mr. Wingate, "weekly interviewed by some of us,
and both she and the Palatine knew all we were
doing. She was taught Hebrew by old Mr. Saphir,
We were nearly as well known in the Palace as in
the city of Buda-pest. Her Highness had a long
correspondence with some of the mission party."

42 THJt: MISSION FOSTERED.

Dr. Smith gives a special instance of the in-
fluence of the Court in promoting the mission : —
The report of the work in Pesth had gone forth
everywhere, and awakened a very general spirit
of inquiry in Hungary. Of this the missionaries
wished to take advantai>^e. Six of the most oifted
of the converts were trained with oreat care for
two years, with a view to their being sent out as
evangelists. But there was no immediate prospect
of the door being opened. Such a thing as a
proselytizing expedition through the towns and
villages of Hungary was unheard of. and it seemed
almost to be impossible under a Government so
intolerant. The men were ready, but how were
they to proceed ? We communicated our wishes
to the Archduchess, who undertook to seize the
first favourable opportunity to lay the whole matter
before the Archduke, and boldly to solicit his pro-
tection. Now mark the providence of God ! A few
days later there occurred a violent outbreak among
the peasants in Austrian Poland. A large number
of the proprietors, with their wives and children,
were massacred in cold blood, and many other
frightful excesses were committed. The news had
just reached Pesth. The Archduke, who was a
just man, and sincerely desired to promote the
welfare of the people according to the measure of
his light, was greatly troubled. For a time he
walked up and down in his chamber in deep thought,
and greatly agitated. The Archduchess, coming in
and finding him in this state, asked if an}" thing

INFLUENCE OF THE COURT.

had happened to vex him. He answered, '' Nothing
personally, but I have been thinking of those fearful
atrocities in Poland, and I have come to the con-
clusion that, unless the Bible be circulated among
these people and they get good in this way, no
other means will raise them from their present
degradation." She was immediately ready with
the reply, " If an attempt of this kind were made
in Hungary, would you give it your protection ? "
He said, ^*Yes, I certainly would." She then
unfolded to him our whole scheme, which he highly
approved of. He had often expressed his con-
fidence in the prudence and circumspection of the
Scotch missionaries. He now entrusted Jier with
a message to us, to the effect that we should send
out men with as little noise and public observation
as possible, and that, if they met with any molest-
ation from the authorities, they were on no account
to offer resistance, but report the case at once to
us, and we to him, and that he would take his own
measures for its repression. Even he himself could
not go beyond a certain point. His power was
limited, and had it come to the knowledge of the
supreme power in Vienna, that he was countenancing
the circulation of the AVord of God, he might easily
have been involved in trouble. The door now
stood open. The messengers went forth, held many
evangelistic meetings, and the Scriptures were
circulated by thousands in the villages and towns
throughout Hungary. It may be mentioned that
commendatory letters were obtained from Superin-

44 DEATH OF ARCHDUKE PALATINE.

tendent Torok of the Eeformed Church, and
Superintendent Dr. Szekasz of the Lutheran
Church, to the pastors of all parishes in Hungary,
asking them to do all they coukl to further
the end in view — the distribution of the Bil^le
and the preaching of the gospel to the Jews.
And, in the course of four or five years, no town
or village in Hungary had been left unvisited.
The mission, conducted with great prudence from
Dr. Duncan's time and onwards, carried with it
the sympathy of both branches of the Protestant
Church, and was the means of a great revival of
religion. Dr. Duncan had friendly relations also
witli the Eoman Catholic dignitaries, and he and
his colleagues commanded their esteem.

The Archduke Palatine died in 1847, a humble
and believing penitent at the foot of the Cross.
He had for many years been a regular reader of the
Bible, but it was only when the shadows of the
coming darkness gathered round him, that full
spiritual light arose in his soul. Several months
before his death he was seized with a violent illness,
which threatened to carry him off. From this he
partially recovered. A cloud passed over him for a
time, but it was dissolved, and he became unusually
cheerful. He acknowledg;ed afterwards that in
the days of odoom he had been reviewioo- his
past life, and had everywhere discovered sin, and
that now he put his whole trust in the merits and
righteousness of Christ. Soon afterwards his last
illness began. A few hours before his death his

PERSECUTION OF THE ARCHDUCHESS. 4f)

wife said to liim, " As you are now so soon to stand
before the judgment-seat of God, I wish to hear
from you for the hist time what is the ground on
which you rest your hope ? " His immediate reply
w^as, "The blood of Christ alone,'' with a strong
emphasis on the alone.

Immediately after the death of her husband, the
Archduchess was hurried off by Imperial mandate,
against her will, to Vienna, where she underwent
a species of banishment, or rather imprisonment.
Separated from the brethren, watched on every
side, surrounded with spies, her visitors reported
at the Imperial Palace, her character and principles
calumniated by the Jesuits — her days were indeed
days of suffering and sorrow.

The Eev. Dr. Keith thus describes her state at
this time : —

"Her palace in Vienna was to her like a prison.
There her Christian zeal could be restrained.
Christian fellowship, except rarely, and even cor-
respondence with like-minded friends, were denied
her. Letters from the Duchess of Gordon, though
various modes of conveyance were tried, never
reached her. ' That speaks volumes,' said one of
the highest rank, when told it. Strange things
were surmised about her in the Austrian Court,
as if to justify cruel and unwarrantable conduct.
Baron (the Chevalier) Bunsen asked me, 'Is she
not — ' pausing like a courtier, but putting his hand
to his head. 'Oh, yes,' smilingly, was my plain
reply; ' she is beside herself, like the Apostle Paul ;

4G DEATH OF THE ARCHDUCHESS.

and for the same reason, too — for Jesus' sake.'
' Is that the case ? ' he asked. ' Most certainly,' I
answered : ' otherwise she has as clear a head and
as sound a judgment as either you or T have ' ('or,'
I might have added, ' any one I know '). ' What
else but mad can a truly devoted Christian be
accounted in the popish House of Hapsburg ? ' "
At times she was visited by the Protestant
pastors of Pestli and by the Scottish missionaries,
and occasionally she was permitted to visit Hun-
gary. Though her circumstances were so dark,
she liad light and joy within. And after the
troubles of 1848, when the Government of Austria,
under the influence of the reaction, attempted to
extinguish the rights and liberties of the Protestant
Church, she threw herself fearlessly into the breach.
A short time before her death she went on a visit
to Pesth. She was there taken ill with influenza,
which soon assumed a typhoidal character, and
ultimately reached the brain. Her son, the Arch-
duke Joseph, and her daughter Elizabeth, w^ife of
the Archduke jMax Ferdinand, both of them
devotedly attached to her, were with lier during
the illness, and the Protestant pastors of Pesth and
Buda were admitted freely to her sick-bed. Slie
died in peace, in full confidence of a glorious
resurrection, on the 30th March, 1855. She died
where she would have wished, among her Christian
friends in Hungary, who were about her in her Inst
hours, and witnessed her triumphant death.

47

CH/VPTER VI.

ADOLPH'S DEPARTURE FROM PESTH.

Adolph leaves Pesth with Edersheim and Tomory — How thev
got away — Edersbeim's Conversion and Career — Kapid
progress of the Mission — Troublous times — The Hungarian
War — Great Success afterwards — The fields ripe unto
Harvest — Expulsion of the Missionaries — Mission ^Yo^k
resumed.

AFTER tlie iDaptism of the Sp.phirs, tlieir light
shone with increasins: brio-htness on all around
them. Adolph became a zealous little Evangelist,
and when Dr. Duncan prepared to go to Scotland
to begin his professorial work in Edinburgh, old
Mr. Saphir wished, much as he loved him, to
give up his Benjamin, to be educated and prepared
for the Christian ministry. xVnd so, after mucli
prayer and consideration and sorrow of heart, it
was resolved to part wdtli the loved Adolph, the
bright spirit of the liome, to be trained for this
most important work. All the members of tlie
family, father and mother and sisters, even
Adolph himself, acquiesced in the separation, as
necessary for this purpose, but not without many
tears. He left his fathers house in the autumn

48 ADOLPII LEAVES PESTH.

of 1843, and weut to Dr. Duncan to Edinburgh,
that he might perfect his knowledge of English.
He was then only twelve years of age, and
having been the beloved companion of his fatlier,
especially in their latter times of trial and of
victory, the parting was a terrible wrench to the
old man. Adolph was never able to return to
Pesth, and he only once afterwards met his father,
on the occasion of a visit of his parents to their
daughter, Mrs. Schwartz, at Berlin. He could not
return, even for a visit, on attaining manhood, as
he would have been called on to serve in the army.
The- method of his leaviuo; Pesth was in some
ways as remarkable as the other events of the
mission. It was resolved to send two others
also — Alfred Edersheim and Alexander Tomory,
both able converts of the mission — to complete
their theological studies in Edinburgh ; but there
was a difficulty in getting them away, as the
Government of Austria would not allow its sul)-
jects to leave the country, before they had per-
formed their military service. Fortunately, the
well-known Indian missionary, Dr. John AYilson
of Bombay, arrived in Pesth at the time on his
way to Scotland, accompanied by Duujaboi, a
Parsee convert. He was regarded by the authori-
ties as a man of distinction, and was therefore
permitted to take with him persons in his service.
Edersheim was appointed his secretary, Saphir
and Tomory to other offices, and thus all three
got away without interference.

ALFRED EDERSHEIM, JXD. 49

As Alfred Edersheim became afterwards well
known, especially through his work, TJve Life
and Times of the MessiaJi, a short account of his
conversion and life, written by Mr. Wingate,
will interest our readers : —

i\.mong the many distinguished trophies of
Divine grace which it has pleased the great Head
of His Church to bestow on the Free Church of
Scotland's mission to the Jews in Hungary, Dr.
Saphir and Alfred Edersheim, D.D., Ph.D.,''M.A.,
Oxon., late Warburton Lecturer of Lincoln's Jnn,
and Grinfield Lecturer of the University of Oxford,
were the most distinguished.

On reaching Buda-pest in 1847, young Eders-
heim, then about seventeen, became a student at
the University. He had been brought up luxuri-
ously in Vienna, and w^as one of the leaders of
fashion. He was highly educated, spoke Latin
fluently, knew Greek, German, French, Hebrew,
Hungarian, and Italian. When Cremieux, the head
of the French bar, paid a visit to Vienna, the
synagogue presented liim with an address, and
deputed young Edersheim to deliver it. Cremieux
was so pleased wath his eloquence, that he offered
his father to take his son to Paris and provide for
him for life, but his parents would not give him
up. This was the year previous to our meeting.
His tutor. Dr. Porgos, spoke English, and intro-
duced him to the Kev. Dr. Duncan, the Kev. Mr.
Smith, and myself. We felt much interested in
him. Dr. Porgos had to leave for Padua to get liis

50 EDERSHEUrS CONVERSKW.

medical diploma, and thongli still a Jew in religion,
brought his pupil to me and said, " Mr. AVingate,
I give you charge of Alfred ; take care of him."
I said, '' Porgos, how can you, a Jew, give your
pupil to me ? You know I can only pray that he
may be a true Christian." " Never mind ; I know
no one who will so conscientiously care for him.
1 am off for six months.''

Before the winter was over, Edersheim was under
the teaching of the Holy Spirit, and had glorious
views of the Divinity of Christ. Trusting in His
one Sacrifice and filled with the peace of God, he
gave himself up to l^e His servant in any way
it might please God to direct him. The Jews
were astonished. He opened a class to teach the
students English, on the condition that the Bible
should be their only lesson book. Baptized, and
now full of life and vigour, it was resolved that
he should o'o to Edinburcvh to the Eev. Pro-
fessor Duncan's, to complete there his theological
studies.

Edersheim after ordination was, first, missionary
to the Jews at Jassy, Koumania, and then minister
for many years at the Free College Church, Old
Aberdeen. Severe illness brought him south, and
Principal Chalmers and I advised Torquay, as one
lung was already affected. At Torquay he went
to a hotel — the best there ; but finding that it
was beyond his resources, he sent for the landlord
and asked for his bill. The landlord, an earnest
Christian, told him to leave that to him. Mean-^

CAREER, ILLNESS, AND DEATH. 51

while his presence was talked about in Torquay,
and a deputation waited on him to ask him to
preach in a room of the hotel. People flocked to
him, and in about eighteen months I was called
to introduce him, in the beautiful Scotch Church
of Torquay, built for him, where he was blessed
to the salvation of many — specially of the upper
classes. Some years later he was seized again with
inflammation of the lungs, and had to resign his
charo'e. MtQx a stav in the Riviera, he settled in
Bournemouth. Here he held private meetings
and gave himself to literary work. He then
joined the Church of England, and became a vicar
in Dorsetshire. Spiritual blessings followed him
everywhere, and every year added to his published
books. As a preacher, his eloquence and sincerity
gained for him great respect ; and he was the only
Hebrew Christian clergyman, so far as I know, who
was invited by the late Dean Stanley to preach
in Westminster Abbey, and by Dean Vaughan
in the Temple Church. He was appointed " Select
Preacher " in the University of Oxford. His large
and increasing literary labours induced him to
resign his country living, and he removed to
Oxford, where he wrote his great work, The Life
and Times of the Messiah. He died in 1889.

In Principal Brown's well-known Memoirs of
Dr. Dwican,^ Dr. Smith oives an account of the

1 See Life of the late Jolin Duncan, LL.D., by David Brown,
D.D., pp. 353-4.

52 PROGRESS OF THE PESTH MISSION.

progress made by the mission, after Dr. Duncan
had left Pesth :—

The parting with him was painful, but the
faithful Lord, who had stood by us in similar
circumstances the year before, kept us from
despondency ; nor was our confidence misplaced.
The Word of God grew, and multiplied greatly,
and the Lord added to the Church, if not daily,
yet from time to time, such as should be saved.
The blessino[ which rested on the mission was even
less conspicuous in the number of converts than
in the love, harmony, and mutual confidence which
reio:ned amono; them. Strano;ers who visited us
from many cjuarters felt, according to their own
statement, as if, overleaping the lapse of centuries,
they had suddenly stepped into the midst of the
Apostolic Church. Mr. Saphir was associated with
us in the work, and proved by his deep piety,
his rare humility, and his great learning, a most
efficient coadjutor. A school was established under
the auspices of his singularly devoted son Philipp,
of whose life a sketch is given in a later chapter,
which, before the premature death of its founder,
immbered more than a hundred children, to all of
whom there was imparted a thoroughly Christian
education, not only with the consent, but in many
cases with the most cordial approval, of their
Jewish parents. A superior class of colporteurs
or evangelists were trained, and sent into all
parts of Hungary, meeting, wherever they went,
with eager inquiries, regarding the strange reports

TROUBLOUS TIMES. 53

of conversions in Pestli, wliicli Lad penetrated
into every corner of the country. The friendly
alliance between us and the Protestant pastors
of Pesth and Buda, which had been initiated in
the time of Dr. Duncan, became more and more
intimate. Weekly ministerial conferences were set
on foot, which, besides being productive of direct
spiritual benefit to these brethren, and to all of
us, enabled the mission through them to exercise
a powerful, and in some respects even a deter-
minino' influence on the welfare of the Protestant
Church, during the perilous times that followed.

These troublous times beo-an with the !j;feat war
of 1849, when the Hungarians, headed by Kossuth,
soug^ht to establish their independence, and Eussia
united with Austria, to fight against the Magyars.
Of this period Dr. Smith gives a vivid jDicture : —

The years 1848-49 brought great disaster and
woe on Hunoary. The tide of battle rolled over
the land once and again, from the extreme limit
of Transylvania to the very gates of Vienna.
Wave succeeded wave, sweeping many thousands
of victims into eternity. The soil was drenched
with l^lood, and the s\^'ord grew weary w^ith
slaughter. The fortress of Buda was taken and
retaken several times by the contending forces.
Pesth was three times bombarded. One bomb-
sliell passed right through my own house, and
fell into the court behind. Another exploded in
mv studv, and set fire to mv furniture and

54 THE FIELDS RIPE UNTO HARVEST.

books. A state of iDdescribable confusion pre-
vailed throughout the country, and, after the war
was concluded, a reign of terror, by arrests and
executions, began.

The missionaries had to retire for a time, but
when they returned they found the fields ripe unto
harvest : —

Having lost their earthly treasures, people had
begun to long for something less perishable and
uncertain. A thirst sprang up for the Word of
God such as had never existed in Hungary before.
Our work had been interrupted during the war,
but now, towards the end of 1849, it was resumed
with tenfold results. Our evangelists went forth
again on their mission, and the eagerness of the
peoj)le to possess copies of the Bible was such that
for a time our su^^ply ran short, and we could not
meet the demand.

But while this blessed work was going on, the
clouds begun to lower over our heads. The Aus-
trian Government, after wavering for a time, now
finally determined the course of its future policy.
It was resolved to carry matters with a high hand,
to bid defiance to public opinion, to suppress the
last remains of public liberty, and, above all, to
throw the whole education of the country into the
hands of the Jesuits. . . . The principle of free
inquiry asserted by Protestants made them pecu-
liarly obnoxious to the Government. . . . The
measures adopted against the Lutheran and Re-
formed Churches became every day harsher and

EXPULSION OF THE MISSIONARIES. 55

more tyrannical. . . . We had meanwhile been
pursuing our usual course quietly and unosten-
tatiously. We could not expect this state of
things to last, and felt, but too truly, that the end
was at hand. At length the thunder-cloud burst
on our heads in the first week of January 1852.
We were ordered to leave the country within ten
days, and all efforts to prevent this being enforced
proved vain.

A thousand cords, which bound us to a land
where we had seen so many marvels of God's
grace, to its Church, to individuals, to brethren
dearly and tenderly loved, were at once and
violently snapped asunder. The desolation of
heart I felt in that hour I cannot describe. There
was an agony in it which I had never known
before, an agony w^hich increased as we began to
dismantle our happy home ; and its bare cheerless
walls became a picture of our own hearts. That
Sabbath was devoted to visiting our little flock in
their own houses. The chapel was closed by order
of the Government, so that we could not take
leave of them in public. K spy was prowling
about the door, to see if any one entered it. What
a contrast to the days when with gladsome step
we were wont to ascend into the house of God, to
behold His beauty in His sanctuary I On a dreary
winter morning, between four and five, we started
on our journey. The last faces I saw were those of
two Hungarian pastors, with a look on them which
wont to my very heart. Thus ended our ten

56 OLD MR. ^APHIRS PEACEFUL END.

years' sojourn in the capital of Hungary. We had
been brought thither by the hand of God ; we were
driven thence by the malice of Satan.

After the expulsion of the missionaries old Mr.
Saphir continued to act, from 1852 to 1861, as
agent of the mission of the Free Church to the Jew^s
in Pesth, under the recognized official guidance of
Superintendent Torok, who took the deepest interest
in the work. In the school, Mr. Saphir had about
six or eight teachers under him, and about 300
to 400 children in attendance. He conducted a
service in his own room on the Sundays. He
died in 1864, at the age of eighty-four, peacefully
and joyfully resting in Jesus, the Messiah, the
Saviour, and the King of Israel.

In 1861 Mr. Van Andel was appointed mission-
ary, and in 1863 Mr. Konig. The obstacles were
then removed. For the last twenty years the
Eev. Andrew Moody, the nejjliew of Dr. Moody
Stuart, has carried on the w^ork with great interest.
Mr. Moody writes : — " The school founded by
Philip Saphir forty-six years ago, and of which I
have charge, has become, as you are aware, a
very large institution. We enrolled last year 511
pupils. The aged father, Israel Saphir, was still
alive when I arrived in this city in 1864. I saw
him before he died. When I asked him if he
remembered Dr. Duncan, he said, laying his hand
on his heart, ' I have him here ! ' A considerable
number of Jews and Jewesses, old and young.

WIDESPREAD INFLUENCE OF MISSION. 57

have been baptized in connection with our mission
during the last three years."

Few missions, either Jewish or other, have had so
remarkable a history or so widespread an influence
as that of Pesth. It gave an impetus to Jewish
missions, the effect of which will never pass away,
and among its other manifold results, produced
Adolph Saphir.

58

CHAPTER VII.

ADOLPH'S EDUCATION IN BERLIN.

Adolph in Edinburgh — Mrs. Duncan — Education in Berlin,
1844 to 1848 — Attends the Gymnasium — Religious Diffi-
culties — Letter to Mr. Wingate — Becomes acquainted
with the Rev. Theodore Meyer — Happy Influence of this
Friendship — Effect of his Difficulties on his future Doctrine
and Teaching.

ADOLPH spent half a year in 1843-44, together
with Edersheim and Tomoiy, in the house of
Dr. Duncan in Edinburgh, where he improved in
health, and acquired a good knowledge of English.
Here he enjoyed the truly motherly care of Mrs.
Duncan, who had been an immense help to her
husband in his work in Hungary. Mr. Tomory
thus describes her : — Her sweet and powerful influ-
ence was felt by all. She was devoted, kind, and
affable ; well fitted for the important position and
the great opportunities which the Head of the
Church vouchsafed to them. Along with devoted-
ness and piety she was possessed of singularly good
sense and practical wisdom ; fitted in every way
to be a mother in Israel. She did great service
to the Church in taking care of the Doctor during

ADOLPH IN EDINBURGH. 59

his labours in Pestli ; and after he accepted the call
to the Professorship in Edinburgh, she took her full
share of the work and the responsibilities, and
we felt her kindness towards us. She had a
smile and a word of counsel for us all. She was
beloved by all, and very popular. I will ever
remember Vvdth thankfulness that the Lord gave
me the precious opportunity of living under the
roof of Dr. and Mrs. Duncan. What many a
minister owes to a godly mother, the Lord granted
me to enjoy as a stranger in a strange land,
tlirouo;h the kindness and wisdom of that sinou-
larly devoted mother in Israel. Edersheim, Adolph
Saphir, and myself lived with them during the
first session after the Disruption. What a heavy
charge, to have three young inexperienced youths
to deal with ! — but her kind and judicious ways
made it all easy. She had an eye upon our
comfort and upon our studies, Scotticizing us,
and imbuing us with good principles. Her in-
fluence over us was j)aramount.

After his stay in Edinburgh Adolph went to
Berlin, to the house of the Kev. Charles Schwartz,
who had married his eldest sister. Mr. Schwartz
had just arrived there from Constantinople as a
Jewish missionary of the Free Church of Scotland,
and it was considered best that Adolph should be
with his relatives, as he was still only in his
thirteenth year. In Berlin he could go on with
liis education uninterruptedly, because German was
to him his mother tongue, which he had spoken

60 SENT TO BERLIN.

from infancy, and in which he had received his
early education. He was to the last more eloquent
and telling in German than even in English, and
in conversation, whenever he was deeply interested,
he loved best to speak in German. He speaks
thus himself as to his education in Berlin: — "After
six months at Edinburgh, where I stayed at the
house of the learned and pious Orientalist and
expositor, Dr. John Duncan, and acquired the
English language, I was sent to my brother-in-law,
the Kev. Charles (afterwards Dr.) Schwartz, who
at that time was working in Berlin, as Jewish
missionary of the Free Church of Scotland. In
Berlin I attended a public school for three years
and a half. Towards the end of this time I was
removed into the upper fifth form, having obtained
the highest number of marks. It was my wish
to finish the prescribed course at Berlin, but my
brother-in-law left for Amsterdam, and I was
compelled to go to Scotland, where I had friends
who took a kindly interest in me. I was then in
my seventeenth year."

In Berlin he attended the Gymnasium, from
1844 to 1848. This portion of his life, from the
age of thirteen to seventeen, was very important as
a preparation for his future career. He acquired
a thorough knowledge not only of German liter-
ature, but also of German philosophy, as Hegel -
ianism, which enabled him to understand easily,
in after years, the source and weakness of much
of the half-fiedo-ed Nationalism which has reached

LETTER TO MR. WING ATE. 61

this country and afFeetecl so much various branches
of theology. Much of his power in combating
unbelief arose from the ordeal through which he
passed in these Berlin years. He never lost his
spiritual confidence and his Christian faith, but he
passed through many sharp conflicts and dark and
gloomy experiences.

Before referring to this, we may quote from
an affectionate letter, written to Mr. Wingate. It
is dated near the end of his Berlin sojourn —

"Having the opportunity of sending my hearty love to you,
and my hearty thanks for your last kind letter, by my dear
parents, I cannot avoid embracing it. I have great joy to
see, by your kind note, that you have not yet forgotten me,
and that you, who have instructed me in the doctrines of the
blessed Gospel, and by whom it pleased God to bring salvation
nigh unto me, remember me still before the Throne of Grace.
Often do I think, with a joyful and grateful mind, on those
sweet and precious hours in which you explained to me the
way of salvation, in which you read with me the Gospel of the
Lord Jesus Christ, told me of His love and mercy to poor
sinners, and invited me to be reconciled with God, by faith in
the crucified and risen Messiah.

" I often think back on that blessed time, important for
my whole life, when the Lord in His grace and mercy called
us out of darkness into His wonderful light, brought us from
death in trespasses and sins to a life in Him in whom there is
all life and all light. And as you are my father in the Lord
Jesus Christ, and as by you God has converted me to His
glad and free-making Gospel, I feel the desire to write and
tell you all concerning me, as I cannot have the privilege of
personal intercourse." The letter thus concludes — " I am
getting on very well in my studies, and my wish and desire
is that I may be one day able to do something in Christ's
kingdom, and be of some use in bringing nigh salvation to
the lost sheep of the House of Israel. May the Lord prepare

62 BECOMES ACQUAINTED WITH MEYER.

me for His work, may He honour me to labour in His vine-
yard, and to proclaim the glad tidings of Zion,

' ' Your most grateful and affectionate,

" Adolph Saphir.

''Berlin, August 20, 1847.
"Rev. W. Wingate, Pesth, Hungary."

It was ill 1847 that he became acquainted with
the Rev. Theodore Meyer,^ who to the end of his
life was one of the most loved of his friends.
Mr. Meyer, who had been a Jewish Eabbi in
Mecklenburg at Schwerin Btitzow, but whose eyes
had been opened to the trutli, came to Berlin,
where lie was warmly received by Neander, Heng-
stenberg, and other well-known theologians of the
period, and where he acquired distinction as a
scholar, in the ranks of men noted for their
scliolarshi|). Dr. Hengstenberg introduced Meyer
to Schwartz, and at Schwartz's house, Meyer met
the young Adolph, then nearly sixteen years of age,
and a pupil in the upper cLass of the Gymnasium.
They were at once attracted to each other. Meyer
was struck with the thoughtfulness, genius, and
sincerity of Saphir, and young Saphir found in
Meyer a friend to wliom he could freely unbosom
himself. Soon Meyer became his Hebrew teacher,
and was constantly with him, introducing him to
circles which, being still so young and not a
University student, he could not himself have
entered.

This friendship was to Adolph of much im-

^ Now Jewish missionary of the English Presbyterian
Church in London.

MEYERS HAPPY IXFLtlE^CE. 63

portance, for Meyer found him in a state of con-
siderable anxiety and depression. He had not lost
his faith, which had been so bright at the time
of his conversion ; but it was clouded over by the
influences around him. The whole atmosphere of
the Gymnasium was rationalistic. Hegelianism,
Pantheism, everything tending to unbelief in the
Divine and supernatural, seemed to be in the
very air breathed by the teachers and the abler
pupils. Eeligion was generally at a low ebb
in Berlin, and the Jewish families with whom
he associated were intensely worldly and almost
materialistic. For a youth of philosophic insight
and ability, who could appreciate the attractions
of the Hegelian philosophy, and of Pantheism
generally, and could look at things from their
standpoint, this was no ordinary trial. A less
profound mind would have been less afiected.
Divine grace within, and the experiences he had
had of the intense reality of his relations with
God in Christ, struggled against it, but the
struggle was severe, and it is cjuite possible that
it mio'ht have undermined his delicate constitution,
if he had not met with a friend with whom he had
thorough sympathy, to whom he could unbosom
himself, who could understand him and enter with
him into the philosophical speculations, and yet
help to remove away the clouds that troubled him.
He thus refers to this struggle in a letter, dealing
with Broad-Churchism, written to a friend in 1877 :
— " I passed for several years through many doubts

64 EFFECT OF HIS DIFFICULTIES.

and phases, and was exposed to very ' broad ' and
even pantheistic influences, and I remember that I
was often irritated by severe and impatient orthodox
treatment. The reading of Scripture and of Pascal's
Pensees, and the friendship of a few really godly
Christians dispelled the mists. I have a great
horror of the stveetesf, modified, and rationalized
Christianity a Id Dean Stanley, &c., although 1
know that excellent men have felt drawn into it.
But I think that they have still the quintessence
of the old views sustaining them." And again
he writes to the same correspondent, " I suff'ered
for years from the teaching of Schleiermacher's
disciples when I was about seventeen."

This experience of Saphir's in the depths — his
thorough understanding of the Pantheistic philo-
sophy — had, no doubt, in God's providence, a great
influence on his future, enabling him to take a
broad and philosophic view of things, and to resist
the subtle influences of a system, which indirectly
perplexes multitudes who do not understand the
sources or the philosophy. One traces in the
writings of Saphir that he sees far beneath the
surface, that he comprehends clearly the connecting
links, and that he maintains the Divine authority
of Scripture throughout, not because he does not
appreciate the questions raised, but because he
understands them so thoroughly that he at once
traces influences destructive of Christianity, as a
Divine religion, where many theologians, less pro-
found, become bewildered in minutiae.

65

CHAPTER VIII.

PHILIPP SAPHIR AND HIS SISTER ELIZABETH.

Memoir of Philipp written by Adolph when a Student in
Edinburgh — Philipp's early Carelessness and Worldliness
— Conversion and Baptism — Training at Carlsruhe — Deli-
cacy — Intense Sufferings — Starting Young Men's Society
— Opening of School for Jewish Children — Its Great
Success — His Joyful Death — Elizabeth Saphir described by
her Sister.

FULLY to appreciate the blessed results of tiie
conversion of the Saphir household, we must
not overlook the devoted career of the elder brother
Philipp, who is mentioned in the earlier chapters.
His memoir, written by Adolph when a student
in Edinburgh, is of remarkable interest. A Life
so devoted and so nobly spent for the good of
those around him, in the midst of great physical
suffering and depression, we have seldom read. It
is a beautiful life. We efive some of the leadino-
features as brought out in his brother Adolph's
narrative, which is of thrilling interest throughout,
and shows how, when there is a burning zeal for
Christ, all impossibilities vanish.

Although he received a good education at home,
the temptations of the world proved too strong

66 THE STATE OF RELIGION PICTURED.

for Philipp, and he led a careless and wild life.
Yet he found no lasting happiness in worldly joys
and sins, and at times a strong reaction would take
place. Kesolutions of improvement were formed.
Sometimes he turned to the strict observance of
the Jewish laws and institutions, at other times
he felt attracted by the grandeur of the Komish
Church, and its outward show of devotion.

On the one hand, the unmeaning, often hypo-
critical, at best lifeless, formalism and orthodoxy
of the strict Jews could produce no other effect
than that of repelling him, and impressing him
with the feeling that in these antiquated forms
there was no spirit, and that these ceremonies were
not the indices of a holy and devoted life ; while,
on the other hand, the hollow infidelity, the un-
defined morality, the witty scorn of all positive
religion which characterized the young, talented,
and gifted, while they attracted him, inspired no
principle, strength, or object of life. Again, the
Christian population was without light, and dead.
Christianity had become a lifeless form. Christ
was never shown to him. Gay life, amusements
of every kind, less of an intellectual than a merely
carnal and sensual nature, seemed to form the
centre .of the life of those so-called Christians.
But, with all the coldness and death which pre-
vailed in the synagogue, the Old Testament was
there read and tauoht, and its moralitv, however
deficiently apprehended, was inculcated ; and, by
afflictions sent on the whole population and his

MEMOIR OF PHILIPP SAPHIB. 07

family in particular, God prepared his heart for
the reception of the truth.

When Philipp was fifteen years old a terrible in-
undation took place at Pesth. The water in places
reached the heio^ht of ten feet, and stood on a level
with the window^ of the second storey. Many
buildings fell, and there was great loss of life. He
was especially active, and saved many lives and
much property. This event made a deep impres-
sion, and prepared the way for more solemn
convictions.

In 1842, about a year after the establishment
of the mission, the Rev. C. Schwartz visited Pesth
on his way to Constantinople, and was detained
there for some weeks. He addressed many Jews
in German, and produced a great impression,
among others, on Philipp Saphir, then nineteen
years of age. The light broke in upon him. He
wrote to Mr. Schwartz, after his departure: — ''I
thank God daily for having sent you to us, and
for having inclined my heart to receive the message
you brought, and to enter in at the straight gate
which leads to God. ... I feel the strength and
joy of the Holy Spirit ; so do also my sister and
brother." He longed also for others. " One thought
gives me much pain and distress. What will
become of your parents, your relatives, your
people ? Mr. Smith and Mr. Wingate seek most
earnestly to lead me to salvation. I cannot pray
enough for them.'^

All associated with him remarked that he was

68 PHILIPFS BAPTISM.

altogether a changed being. He sought the
direction of God in all he undertook, and the Word
of God was his delight. But nothing was more
manifest than the consciousness of sin and weak-
ness, and the remembrance of sins which, although
he believed them to be forgiven of God, could not
yet be forgotten by himself. This consciousness
gave him that modesty and humility which so
characterized him.

On Tuesday, April 4, 1843, he was baptized
in the Calvinistic church of Pesth, by the super-
intendent, the Eev. Paul Torok. He wrote two
days after to Mr. Schwartz : — Tuesday was the
most important day in my life. I was admitted
into the Church of Christ. I cannot describe my
feelings to you. Ah ! the infinite love of God !
He has given me much peace. Nothing will de-
prive me of it. I am happy, joyful ; my soul is
with God. I praise Christ every hour. I regard
my life only as one single point, and have death
continually in view ; therefore I lay myself into
Christ's arms every evening, so that, if it should
be my last sleep, I may fall asleep in the Lord.
This is now my joy ; but the week before my
baptism I thought upon almost nothing else but
my sins. I looked back upon my past life. I
was quite overpowered by the thought of Christ's
redeeming love, and I wept and repented, and God
has wiped away my tears, and I have heard His
voice, "Be of good cheer, My son, thy sins are
forgiven thee."

PHILIFFS TRAINING. 69

On the Sunday following he received for the
first time the Lord's Supper. A few days after
he left Pesth for Carlsruhe, to be trained as a
teacher, having an ardent desire to be useful in
spreading the truth among his countrymen. He
began his studies in the Carlsruhe Seminary for
teachers, with great diligence and earnestness. He
worked from five in the morning till nine at night
with scarcely any interruption, and thus under-
mined his constitution. He met with many pious
friends, with whom he had refreshing intercourse,
and continued to grow in the grace and the know-
ledge of Jesus Christ. At this time he wrote to a
near relative who was then very sad and depressed,
''Let cares become prayers. Luther says, a man
who does not cast his care upon Christ is a dead
and rejected man. Therefore, as a good soldier
of Christ, bear those afflictions patiently, and
overcome them." In his papers of that summer
he often renewed the covenant he made with God
in baptism. Before the end of the year he became
ill through over-study. The submissiveness of his
spirit and Christian joy in his illness are remarkably
shown in these words, quoted from a letter written
to his parents in Dec. 1843: — "It is my duty to
inform you of what the Lord in His great love has
done to me. I will tell you, with a humble heart,
that confesses itself guilty and deserving of
chastisement, the afflictions which our wise and
gracious God has sent me, — and my lips will be
opened to praise Him. It would be my greatest

70 PHILIPFS SUBMISSION UNDER SUFFERING.

comfort to know, that like chiklren of God, to
whom all things work together for good, you will
regard this also as a proof of the love of Jesus,
and will be able, without murmuring and
questioning, to submit cheerfully to God, who
loves us so much." " Shall I be able," he says
at the close, " to complete my studies ? Ah ! my
joy in the prospect of being a teacher was perhaps
too great."

His journal in 1844 is full of deep humility
and earnest devotedness of heart to God ; self-
examination the more searching because the light
was burning so brightly within — the light of the
Spirit. In December of that year he again
became ill, and from this time he lived, with but
little interruption, a life of sickness and pain.

In his diary we find a prayer, of which the
following is a portion : — " I thank Thee from the
bottom of my heart for this punishment, and but
one thing now I request of Thee — that Thy holy
and good Spirit may effect in me Thy purpose ;
that Thy disciple may recover in body and mind ;
that this sickness may be unto life eternal. . .
Lord Jesus, I hear Thy Amen. If I die, I will see
and praise Thee. If I recover, the rest of my life
will flow a stream of gratitude, spent in Thy
service to the honour of Thy name."

He wrote at the same time to the Rev. C.
Schwartz : — " Now I learn how God loves me. I
can only thank God for this illness. I am very
ill, weak, and thin. I think I will go home to ni)'

A YOUNG MEN'^ SOCIETY. 71

Lord and Saviour. I look forward to my end
with joy."

He had to return to Pesth in 1845. His ilhiess
increased. But his confidence in God never
wavered. His energetic nature could not endure
idleness and inactivity. A union of believers,
especially of such as were in the strength and
vio-our of youth, for their mutual advancement in
Christ, and for the sowing of the seed of Christ
in every possible way, suggested itself as the best
work he could do. He called round him a meeting
of Christian young men, who entered heartily into
his idea, and a Young Men's Society was constituted,
on the following basis. 1. It was to be called The
Society of Young Men. 2. Its object was to
propagate the Kingdom of God, especially among
young men, also to assist brethren in distress,
and inquirers after truth. 3. The means to be
employed were to be reading of the Word of God,
prayers, and contributions. 4. The Society was
to meet three times a week for reading and
prayer. 5. Only true, earnest-hearted Christians
were to be invited to join as members ; but they
were to try to bring in young men to the meetings.
6. There was to be a weekly collection on Saturdays;
and 7. there were to be annual reports, with
accounts of the finances.

This Society, so well and wisely organized, proved
a great blessing, and gave Philipp much joy, cheer-
ing him in his suffering, and making him glad in
doing work for Christ.

72 PHILIPPS VIEWS OF CHRISTIAN TRUTH.

His views of Christian truth were exceedingly
clear, like those of his brother Adolph. He
writes : —

'■ I do not merely say I try to be a Christian, but
I say I know it, and the Lord knows it. I am a
Christian. . . . God makes us His children by His
grace through the merit of Christ. Every Christian
has this adoption — I, as much as Moses, Paul,
Peter. It is God's gift. But the full appropriation
of God's gift, the sanctification of the soul, is
different in different individuals, and complete only
in heaven. . . . When the work of sanctification is
most ' prosperous, they will seek the oftener to see
God's grace in Christ the crucified. . . . Yes, a
child of God is and remains a child of God, in good
days and evil days, in bright days and dark days,
under lively and under dull feelings, in the storm
and stress of temptation, yea, even in his fall.
Winds, waves, mists, will not rob him of this faith.
I am a child of God."

When lying on his bed of weakness, Philipp
thought whether he could not promote in some
further way the glory and the Kingdom of Christ.
" How happy would I be," he says in his diary,
•' if Christ intended to do anything through me, a
poor, weak man ! 0, my God, make me a blessing
on this bed of sufi'ering and illness ! "

" When I considered," he writes, " that my
illness would probably be very long, I thought —
Could you not do something during the time of
trial for Him who did so much for you ? So

PFIILIPF BEGINS A SCHOOL. 73

1 thought of children, and teaching them, and
I began with one boy at my bedside. In a few
days I had five, seven, ten ; to-day, I have thirty
children, about ten girls and the rest boys — a school,
you see. I have taught them now for a month ;
and as Dr. Keith and Mr. Grant, from Scotland,
passed through, they examined the children, to the
great satisfaction of our friends."

He wrote thus to Dr. Duncan : — '' In fourteen
or fifteen days I had twenty-three children sitting
before my bed — fourteen Jewish and nine Christian.
I can scarcely describe my feelings as I commenced
instruction. It was soon evident that the Bible
lessons made an impression on the children. The
boys and girls learned with such love and zeal, that
I was able to hold an examination. . . I must
inform you that I never asked any of the parents
to entrust their children to my care. Had I
possessed the wish to do so, my lameness and
crutches would have prevented me. The parents,
as soon as they heard from others that I meant to
give instruction to poor children gratis, sent their
children to me. As my school increased, I was
oblio-ed to chano-e mv lodoino- for one more
commodious. I was anxious to provide myself
with the means necessary for carrying it on.
These, with the exception of some books from
Germany, which I eagerly w^ait for, were speedily
procured, and I was enabled to open the school
with fifty-two children. There were eight Pro-
testants, twenty-one Jewish bo3^s, and twenty-

74 JEWISH OPPOSITION TO SCHOOL.

three Jewish girls. I made a point of speaking
personally with the parents, in order to ascertain
whether the children had their approval, when they
came to me. I immediately drew their attention
to the fact that I was no longer a Jew, but a
Christian who believed in Jesus as the Messiah
that was already come, and that therefore my
school was a Christian school. 'I teach,' said T,
' the Evangelical doctrine as I find it revealed in
the Word of God, and I teach the same whether
my pupils be Jews or Christians. My chief object
is to lead the children to reverence and love God ;
if you do not object to the doctrines of Christianity,
I joyfully receive your children.' I was obliged
to speak in this manner, as I easily foresaw that if
I did not take this precaution I would be accused,
in the event of my encountering opposition from
the hostility of the Jews."

Thus nobly and honestly, on his sick-bed, did
he carry on his work. Jewish opposition was
aroused, and the numbers fell in one day from
fifty-three to twenty-two ; but the children soon
began to come back. Of this time he says — " A
boy, when he heard he could not be sent to the
school again, began to weep bitterly." *' I have
a little Jewish girl in the school, who will not be
called anything but a Christian. When a Jew
told her the other day that Jesus was not God,
she began to cry, and accused the unbeliever to
her mother." His liberality of view is illustrated
in the followino- : — '' A mother came with her

PROGRESS OF PHILIPFS SCHOOL. lb

daughter, and told me that the Rabbi had preached
against me, and forbidden the parents to send their
children. ' Is not this very bad ? ' ' No,' said I,
' he acts conscientiously as his conviction commands
him. He is a Jew, I am a Christian ; he does
not wish to see Jewish children attracted by
Christianity.' ' Never mind,' replied she ; ' be so
good as to receive my children into your school' "
"The Jewish children give me more satisfaction
than the others. They put so many questions,
almost always sensible ones, and sometimes with
such deep meaning that I am quite astonished.
Many of the little ones rejoice in Christ. At
home the children read the Bible and pray." A
service was instituted for Jewish children on the
Lord's Day, and many attended and listened
attentively.

"It is impossible," says Adolph in the Memoir,
"to describe the delight and happiness which he
felt in teaching these poor children. Philipp was
naturally very lively and playful, not only fond
of children, but able and willing to descend to
their standpoint and become a child to them.
His hearty interest in them, his sympathy with
them, and his youthful vivacity and cheerfulness
gained him the aflection and love of his pupils."

The following characteristics remind us of Adolph
himself : — " What he knew, and wished to com-
municate, he stated plainly, concisely, and directly.
He was gifted, moreover, with a lively imagination,
and apprehended facts not merely abstractly with

7G EXCELLENCY OF PHILIPFS TEACHING.

his reason, but with the iniiid's eye, picturing them
to himself distinctly and vividly." He adds : —
" The chief excellency of his teaching consisted in
his believing and acting upon the principle that to
educate children is to train their hearts to know
and love God, and that this object is not only to
be kept in view in the specific religious instruction,
but to be remembered in every lesson that is
taught."

In the meantime the Young Men's Society which
Philipp had instituted continued to prosper.
Twenty pounds were raised in the first year, in
connection with it, chiefly to assist those in need ;
and the meetings on Sundays and Thursdays to
study the Bible were most refreshing.

In June 1847 he had to leave Pesth for a time
to take the baths at Posteng in the north of
Hungary. He was away a month, and all the
time he was active in missionary work, especi-
ally among the Jews. At Pressburg, where he
had formerly resided, he spoke to many of the
Jews he had known before. " On one occasion," he
writes, '' a crowd gathered, and one woman ])egan
to speak to me. I saw in her face bitter iiatred
and aiiger. I am thankful I was able to speak
with her in meekness and love. She calied me
hypocrite and apostate, and began to describe
my death-bed hours, which, she said, would ho,
terrible, on account of the remorse I would then
feel for having denied my faith. I waited till she
had finished this violent oration, and then told her

PHILTPFS CHRISTIAN WORK.

a few things about the love of Jesus, and asked her
to think them over. I went away full of comfort,
remembering the words of Christ, ' Blessed are ye
when men shall revile you for My sake.' "

There is a quiet humour in the following : — " T
was speaking to another Jewess on the coming of
the Messiah, as promised by God to our fathers.
She thought it a sufficient answer that, as a woman
she knew nothing, could not know anything, ought
not to know anything, was not intended by God
to know anything. But although she professed so
frankl}^ her entire ignorance, she showed herself
exceedingly learned and skilful in reviling and
scoldino' me. Yet I made her listen to the truth."

o

Of the crass ignorance of the people an example is
given : — ^^ x4.no ther woman, to whom I had given
a Bible, asked me whether I was the author of the
Book ; a Jewess ! — one of that nation to whom
pertain the glory and the covenants, and the giving
of the Law."

He thus yearns over his people : — " Oh, Israel,
how is thine eye covered with a veil ; and thy
heart also ! Kend thy heart, and not thy gar-
ments ; turn to Him who alone can say a powerful
Ephphatlia to thy closed eye and heart." And then,
remembering his own past : — " Ah, I feel such an
ardent desire to testify of the truth in this city,
where I led such a orodless life." He gives manv
examples of the ignorance of the Jews, and of their
materialism. To them he seemed a strange phe-
nomenon ; l~)ecnuso of the Christians so called, none

78 PHILIPFS SUFFERINGS.

spoke as he did. They were still great in cere-
monies, but had nothing else. " To-day is Sabbath.
Wherein consists the sanctification of this day
among the Jews ? It consists in three j)oii^ts —
They wear a three-cornered hat, a blue frock-coat,
and velvet pantaloons. The Jews are the same
during the week as to-day ; only their dress is
symbolical of a difference between the days."

It was his delight to do good, and to speak
about Christ ; it was no trouble to him ; it came
spontaneously. Wherever he was, he sought
anxiously to find an opportunity of telling those
around him what was to him the life and treasure
of his soul.

He returned to Pesth in July, none the better,
but rather the worse, for the baths. He was then
subjected to terrible tortures by a surgeon probing
the wounds in his legs. Agonizing pain continued
afterwards, but he bore it patiently. " I suffer," he
says, ^' intense pain, but I have resolved not to say
much about it. Let me suffer in silence and solitude
till it pleases God to send me deliverance." Again : —
" My wounds are burned every day with caustic
stone, and they heed not my cries. I wish I
could bear the pain more patiently in those terrible
moments. God has driven me into deep straits,
but, thanks to Him, He is educating; me for heaven.
His ways are dark. So long as we are down here
in this valley, it is impossible to have a clear view
of God's plans or ways ; but from the summit of
the mountain we shall be able to see it all, and

PHILIPFS CARE FOR CHILDREN. 79

to see how, in every step and turn which CtocI
caused us to make, there was Avisdom, blessing,
and love."

He recovered a little, and at last, in October, he
got back to his school, which was in a bad state,
but soon rallied under his care. He thus speaks of
his pupils — "I spoke with them, one by one, read
with them God's Word, and prayed with them,
and every word of warning I gave them applied,
I felt, as much to myself as to them. So we con-
fessed our sins together, teacher and pupils, and
sought God's help. One of the children, a boy
of eight, died after a few days' illness, giving all
evidence of his faith in Christ. A little brother,
a year younger, speedily followed, with like faith.
This produced a great effect among the children
— Jewish children — who began to carry the light
to their homes."

The care and solicitude, says his brother, with
which w^e vratched the progress and development
of the children, who, in such a wonderful way,
were committed to his trainins; ; the attention
and dilio^ence which he bestowed on their educa-
tion ; the joy which he felt on seeing a new Divine
life springing up in the hearts of many of them,
and the anxiety with which he endeavoured to
cherish and foster the tender plant, made him
foro;et in some measure the pain he then suffered,
and helped him to bear the heavy affliction with
which God had visited him. The only bright
gleam of light, in those dark days of suffering, was

80 PHILIPFS INCREASED SUFFERINGS.

to see the love of Christ attracting and saving the
children, in whom he felt such a heart interest.

But his sufferings were soon to increase, and
the ensuing winter brought him days of severer
pain, of deeper agony, both in body and soul, than
he ever had before. In the end of January 1848,
these increased sufferings began, and the physiciau,
in probing the wound again, gave the fatal news
that the bone was affected, and that the complaint
was incurable. The return of the spring had a
favourable influence, and although the local pain
had not decreased, yet with great exertion he
recommenced his school, and to his intense delio^ht
had about 120 children. In the view that the
latter part of his life was to be spent in quiet
and blessed labour among the children, he felt
comfort, gladness, and cheerfulness.

But suddenly, in that year of turmoil and social
earthquakes, there broke out the calamitous
Hungarian war. In May of the next year, 1849,
Pesth w^as bombarded. Many had to flee. One
of the children in his bed was killed by a bomb.
Philipp became weaker and weaker, but his faith
filled him Avith joy. He wrote to his brother : —
"Dear good Brother, — Only a few words. God
has laid me on a bed of sickness, from which I
will not rise again. So rejoice to know that I will
be redeemed, freed from pain, saved — saved from
care ! I will be with Christ. What joy and delight !
I am ready to depart ; I rejoice in God. Pray for
me. My whole body is ruined. In heaven there will

PIHLIPP'S JOYFUL DEATH. 81

be no pain. I praise the Lamb slain for us. So,
farewell." And to his brother-in-law Mr. Schwartz,
he wrote jubilantly: — "I am happy. God has
done great things for me. My body is decaying,
but my inner man lives and grows. I am weak
and miserable, scorched with the heat of affliction,
but within I am strong in my God, and rich in
Him who became poor for me. Heat takes awav
the dross, and prepares a transcendent joy. 1 wait
patiently, and keep quiet under His hand. I do
not dread to die ; the death Conqueror has taken
away the sting of death. I long to be freed from
the body of sin ; I long after the house not made
with hands, eternal in the heavens." These letters
were written in July. His sufferings increased till
it pleased God to call him to Himself on September
27, 1849.

His father wrote Adolph after his death an
account of his last illness, when he was racked
with pain but was calm and quiet and patient.
During his illness he spoke with the Jews who
visited him, about the Kingdom of God. On the
night previous to his death he was quite sleepless,
and as he noticed his sister Elizabeth crying he
called, embraced, and kissed her. " Why do you
weep ?" he said. " Look at me. I am a great deal
better now. The Lord Jesus, our Saviour, is
gracious, and of great mercy. Be of good cheer ;
trust in Him. Should we at any time have offended
each other, we shall be reconciled now and for ever."
He died, while his father knelt bv his side witli

82 PHILIPFS FUNERAL.

two friends and engaged in prayer. The old man
adds, " Our Pbilipp, my dearly beloved son and
your faithful brother, is in heaven. We shall see
him again."

A great number of people, many of them Jews,
attended the funeral. Fifty of the school-children
were present, and their tears were an eloquent
expression of their love and sincere sorrow.

He died at the age of twenty-six, and after his
death his loved school continued to increase and to
prosper.

This life of Philipp Saphir reads like a tale of
the apostolic age. There was not only the patience
in suffering, but the most ardent .zeal and loving
spirit wdiich led him in his weakness and prostration
to labour with such tenderness for children and
for young men, and to accomplish more in a few
years on his bed of suffering than most Christians
accomplish in a life-time. AVe know of no nobler
example of the influence of the Spirit of God, than
in the struggling years of pain of this true son
of Abraham, melted and quickened by the love of
Christ.

Before we leave the story of the Saphir family,
we must also notice a sister Elizabeth, who was
a most devoted Christian, of whom another sister
writes : —

Elizabeth, was not only remarkable for her
manifold gifts, but also for her refined mind and
her humble, loving disposition. She was naturally

ELIZABETH SAPHIR DESCRIBED. 83

devout, and very religious in the observance of
Jewish rites and ceremonies, and a visit to one of
her uncles, an orthodox Jew, during which she
scrupulously endeavoured to observe every tittle
of the rabbinical law, served to bring out still
more strongly this feature of her character. This
uncle was very devoted to her, and having no
daughter wished to adopt her, but to this her
father would not consent, although he allowed
her to prolong her visit. During her absence the
event occurred which brought about such great
changes in the Saphir family.

Elizabeth received an urgent summons from
her anxious father to come home, as he wished
to remove her without delay from her uncle's
influence. Though sorry to leave her uncle, she
w^as very glad to rejoin her family, and the
first few days of her return slipped away very
happily. Coming as she did from an emphatically
Jewish house, she could not fail to notice the
great changes that had taken place in her home,
and desired to know the cause, whereupon her
father told her that they had found Jesus of
Nazareth, and that He was none other than the
promised Messiah — the Christ of God — the Lamb
that takes away the sin of the world. She was
grieved, in fact stunned, on hearing this. The
thought of " apostasy " on the part of those she
loved was terrible to her, and she emphatically
declared her intention to have nothing to do
with it.

84 CONVERSION OF ELIZABETH.

Her father, being a very judicious man, thought
it best not to press her, but only asked her to read
the New Testament carefully, trusting in God's
power to open her eyes and touch her heart. He
also requested the other members of the family
not to interfere with her. Thus she was left for a
time cjuite to herself. How great was her father's
joy and delight when she intimated to him that
she had found the New Testament Scriptures to
be the very Word of God, and looked to Christ as
her Saviour ! Though she was not yet fourteen years
old, no one who knew her could have the slightest
doubt as to the sincerity of her desire to yield
herself up to the Saviour, and to w^alk in His light.
Her shy, retiring disposition led her to take great
delight in solitary meditation and Bible study.
Many long hours were thus spent alone with God.
Soon there arose in her a steadfast desire openly
to confess Him whom her soul loved. She had
a full conception of the supreme importance of
such a step, and of the responsibility of those who
bear the Eedeemer's name.

The writer of these lines remembers the saintly
expression of her countenance, and her concen-
trated attention during the baptismal service. It
was a day never to be forgotten ! All present could
only say, " This is the Lord's doing, and it is
marvellous in our eyes." Soon after, she and her
younger sister w^ere sent to a large boarding-school
at Kornthal, in the south of Germany. This place
was renowned for its high Christian trainiug, as also

ELIZA BETH 'S DIFFICULTIES SUBMO UNTED. 85

for its o'ood teaching; in all modern branches of
knowledge. Elizabeth applied herself zealously
to her studies, and did her best to satisfy all her
teachers ; and in this she fully succeeded. Her
gentle, loving manner attracted all with whom she
came in contact, and soon she became a great
favourite with both teachers and scholars. She was
admired, not merely for her many good qualities,
but chiefly for her loving, sympathizing character,
which deepened and developed day by day. Her
ardent desire was to exercise a good influence over
those who were her fellow-students, and the first
thino- she endeavoured to brino; about was a weeklv
prayer-meeting. She met with many difficulties
which threatened to frustrate her wishes. How-
ever, her perseverance gained the victory ; some
of her young friends came forward, wishing to
take part in the meeting.

For this purpose they could not find any place
but a very small garret at the top of the house.
There they met, and Elizabeth conducted these
meetings. She was the means of bringing young
souls to Christ. This small prayer-meeting did not
always pass off very smoothly. Those who joined
it were often scorned, laughed at, and called
" Pietisten," but the " mad" Elizabeth was only the
more zealous and persevering. The pastor of the
place, a most devoted Christian, had much inter-
course with her, and was her teacher in Hebrew.

A missionary, who was at the time staying there,
took a orreat likino; to her, and asked her to make

S6 ELIZABETH'S WORK AS A TEACHER.

his house her home. He also taught her English.
After a stay of two years, the sisters had to leave
for Pesth, and a general regret was expressed at
Elizabeth's departure ; but a lively correspondence
which she kept up with her teachers and young-
friends served, to unite them still more. She
evinced great concern and anxiety not to lose their
love, and pointed them especially again and again
to the truth as it is in Jesus. Thus she was not
forgotten. The sisters were joined on their way
home by their brother Philipp, who was staying
at the same time at Carlsruhe in a seminary.

After a time of rest Elizabeth resumed all her
studies, and tried her best to make herself useful,
in and out of the house. She had much blessed
intercourse with her beloved teacher, Mrs. Smith,
to whom she was most devoted, and to whom she
looked up with no common regard.

When Philipp started the idea of opening a
school for Jewish children, she took it up at once,
and looked forward impatiently to its commence-
ment. When at last the great work was achieved,
and children came crowding in, her happiness knew
no bounds, and she threw herself at once with all
her strength and energy into the work assigned
to her. She and Philipp were the" pillars of this
remarkable school, which became such a success
and blessing, and which excited no small stir in the
place. Elizabeth had a large class of girls, which
she managed in a masterly way, to the astonishment
of all her friends. Both the pupils and their

THE SCHOOL A GREAT SUCCESS. 87

parents were soon devoted to her, and greatly
admired both her teaching and her dealings with
the children. She visited the parents weekly,
among whom she had free scope to speak of her
personal experiences. Many were deeply impressed
by her testimony, and could not fail to notice her
anxiety as to their souls' salvation.

At the annual examination her results with
her pupils were simply amazing. Superintendent
Torok, who presided on these occasions, could not
express often enough his thorough satisfaction and
admiration at her handling of the subjects, which
she taught with so much clearness and understand-
ing. She was however little accessible to praise,
and w^as often unaware of the influence she exer-
cised on those around her. Her mind and thoughts
w^ere concentrated on one point — to her the most
important in her life — namely, to love and serve
her Master, and to help to minister to her fellow-
creatures as much as she could. She was known
among Jews and Gentiles. All loved and honoured
her. Philipp's death was a great sorrow to her.
She missed him intensely ; at the same time, she
tried to do her very best to endear his memory to
the pupils he had left, to whom he was deeply
attached.

After his death, Elizabeth was more than ever
devoted to her work, and the school was in a
most flourishing condition. Subsequently she be-
came engaged to a man who professed to be a
Christian, and expressed a great interest in the

88 DEATH OF ELIZABETH.

mission scliool. Unfortunately tliis marri age turned
out to be a very unhappy one. Poor Elizabeth
suffered intensely from her husband's ill-treatment.
Her parents, though not aware of this, could not
fail to notice her sad look and deep depression.
On being asked for the reason of this change, she
was most reluctant to give a satisfactory answer,
only mentioning that her husband did not quite
understand her, but she hoped he might improve.

In the meantime things seemed to get w^orse,
and her father, who was deeply devoted to her,
took her home, in order to protect her from further
bad treatment. Her health had by this time
suffered severely, and soon she became very ill —
past recovery. All was done to make her last days
happy and bright. Day and night her father
nursed her ; — but, alas ! she passed away in her
twenty-seventh year, in 1854, chiefly from a broken
heart.

Elizabeth's Bible knowledge was remarkable.
Her jDrayers were singularly beautiful and expres-
sive. Her death caused oreat sensation amouQ- Jews
and Gentiles. It was most touching to notice her
pupils' sorrow and disconsolateness. All came to
take the last farewell of her. One of her friends.
Countess Brunswick, begged to be allowed to see
her. She was struck with Elizabeth's happy ex-
pression ; she put a New Testament in her hands,
and remained for a time in silent prayer with her.

When the writer of these lines was the last time
at Buda-pest, in 1884, she met some of Elizabeth's old

ADOLPH'S TESTIMONY TO HIS SISTER. 61)

friends, who informed her that Elizabeth had never
been forgotten, but was still living in their memory,
— loved and honoured. A lady, rather indif-
ferent towards Christianity, but a great admirer of
Elizabeth, said she considered Elizabeth was a Saint,
and every year, on "All Saints' Day," she laid a
wreath on her grave. Her life was hidden in
Christ. Her end was peace !

Adolph thus refers to the death of this sister : —
My good sister Elizabeth died about a fortnight
ago. We know she died in faith, love, and hope.
The grief and bereavement is on our side only.
She was very noble, and knew how to deny herself
for the sake of God's Kingdom. She felt as much
as a man that her life ought to be of use to the
Church. Next to Philipp I always admired her
most. We are all going home — sooner or later;
but may God grant us a long life, if it please
Him !

^0

CHAPTER IX.

COLLEGE CAEEER IN SCOTLAND.

Adolph's Stay in Glasgow — Session 1848-49 — Tutor with
Mr. AVilliam Brown, in Aberdeen — Acquaintance with
AVilHam Fleming Stevenson — Mutual Benefit — Great In-
fluence of this Fi-iend>hip on his Life — Visits the Steven-
sons in Strabane — A Second Home — His Description of
Stevenson.

WE left Aclolph Saphir in Berlii], where lie
remained during a good part of the time
recorded in his brother's history. He was there
resident with his brother-in-law and sister, the
Eev. C. Schwartz and his wife. At this time his
spirit was a good deal agitated by the Hegelian and
other influences encountered among the teachers
and pupils of the Gymnasium. He had a mind
well fitted to ap[)reciate the attractiveness of the
Hegelian and general Pantheistic philosophy. I'he
great German poet, Goethe, had with all the power
of his genius interwoven that philosophy into his
poetry, and presented it thus in the most attractive
garb. Many other German writers were also Panthe-
istic. This Pantheism has now degenerated largely
into Materialism, which was then beirinnino; to take

ADOLPH COMES TO SCOTLAND. 91

its place and has since been fully developed. Strauss
had written his Leben Jesu, and the treatment of
the New Testament as an ordinary book, and of the
life of Jesus as that of a great but eccentric genius,
was very prevalent. Saphir had much literary
power, as is manifest in all his writings. He could
appreciate the beautiful in literature of every kind ;
and with the great German classics, with Goethe at
their head, he was perfectly familiar. The atmo-
sphere of Berlin was intellectually high, but de-
cidedly un-Christian. Had he encountered it, with-
out that baptism of the Spirit, in his youthful days,
he would have been attracted and carried away, and
have probably made for himself, as his uncle had
done, a distinguished position in German literature,
but would have been lost to the Christian Church.
But he had been truly converted, and therefore,
though influenced and attracted, he fought by
God's grace against and overcame the influence, and
was thus prepared, understanding the intellectual
position and attractions of rationalism, to become
a powerful witness for the truth in after days.

In 1848 he left Berlin, and was at once trans-
ferred to the evangelical atmosphere of Scotland.
Mr. Kobert Wodrow, of Glasgow, had, as we have
mentioned, advocated for many years a mission
to the Jews, and prayed to God that it might be
begun.

After her husband's death, Mrs. Wodrow con*
tinned to take the deepest interest in Jewish work.
Hungary was in the midst of war, so that there

92 ADOLPH AT GLASGOW AND ABERDEEN.

was every reason for Adolpli Saphir not returning,
thither. Besides, he had been given to the Scottish
mission and designed for its work. The histories
of the father and of Adolph himself in his boyhood
were then familiar to numbers of Scottish readers,
through the pages of The Home and Foreign
Missionary Record of the Free Church. The
Pesth mission had made a very deep impression
in Scotland, and Mrs. Wodrow welcomed him to
her home as an inmate, when Adolph began to
carry on his studies for the ministry in Glasgow
University.

On his arrival in Glasgow in the autumn of
1848, he was received with great kindness and
regarded with much interest by many, but the
sudden change to such different surroundings was
very trying to one, of such a retiring and highly
sensitive nature.

In the following year he went to Aberdeen,
where he became tutor in the family of Mr.
William Brown, brother of the Eev. Dr. Charles
Brown of Edinl)urgli and of Principal Brown of
Aberdeen. His old friend, the Eev. Theodore
Meyer, and another well-known Jewish minister.
Professor Sachs, were at the time in Aberdeen,
and received him vrarmly, and in Mr. Brown's
family he was very happy.

He gives himself the following account of his
college career : — " After having passed an examin-
ation, I Was received into the second class of under-
graduates at the University of Glasgow. At this

COLLEGE CAREER IN SCOTLAND. 03

University, and also at Marischal College, Aberdeen,
which I attended afterwards, I took all the pre-
scribed subjects in preparation for the study of
theology, viz. Latin and Greek Literature, Logic,
Moral Philosophy, Mathematics, and in addition
Chemistry. After having obtained good certificates
and taken the first prize for Greek in Aberdeen,
I became a student of theology in the Free Church
College, Edinburgh. About the same time I took
the degree of B.A. at Glasgow, having completed
my triennium."

In Glasgow he first became acquainted with one
whose fame is in all the Churches, and who was
for long years his most devoted friend — the Eev.
^Yilliam Fleming Stevenson, the author of Praying
and Working. This friendship was of the greatest
value to him. Mr. Stevenson was, even as a
student, a man of remarkable culture, of great
literary attainments, of an ardent Christian spirit,
and with large knowledge of missions. He had
followed the history of the Pesth mission, and knew
well both about the Saphirs and about Adolph
himself. He sought him out in Glasgow, and they
were at once attracted to each other, and became
devoted friends. Such a friendship as this, of
greatest importance to both, was invaluable to
Adolph, at this time a stranger in a strange land.
He felt it to be a special guidance of God that had
brought them together. They had literary and
philosophical as well as spiritual affinities, and
during; their theological studies in Edinburgh they

94 FLEMING STEVENSON'S HOME.

lodged together. Stevenson made Sapbir familiar
with English literature, of which he had wide
knowledge, wliile Saphir brought him into contact
wdtli the literature and philosophy of Germany.
Above all, they walked to the house of God in
company, and strengthened each other in faith and
devotion to Christ.

But Fleming Stevenson was not only a friend,
he treated Saphir as a brother, giving him a home
where he would otherwise have been alone in the
world. Saphir went over to Strabane on a long
visit to the Stevenson family in the spring of
1850, after the close of the College term, and spent
there the summer ; and again he was with them
during the summer of 1851.

This home of the Steven sons, which was a true
home to Saphir, who was regarded by them as a
brother, is thus described in the Life and Letters
of Dr. Stevenson.^ " The father was an excep-
tionally intelligent, careful, and well-educated man,
a lover of books, of music, and of scenery. He
made his children his companions, reading aloud
to them in the evenings, and taking them for
afternoon strolls through the glens and lanes of
the neighbourhood. He was a man of earnest,
large-hearted piety. The mother was a devout
Christian, of a quiet, sweet, unselfish spirit. She
prayed much for her children and with them.
There were five sons and daughters, William being

^ Life and Letters of the Rev. William Fleming Stevenson,
D.D., by his wife. Nelson and Sons,

ACQUAINTANCE WITH STEVENSON. O.")

the youngest." There could not have been a
happier or more cheerful household, cultured and
well-educated, with all that liveliness and wit
that give a special charm to Irish circles. Saphir,
who would otherwise have been very desulate,
found here a home. He thus describes his
acquaintanceship with Stevenson and its effect : —
My acquaintance with Stevenson commenced
in the winter of 1848-9 (his first winter as a
student in Glasgow), when we attended the same
classes in Glasgow University, and living in the
same neighbourhood, had almost every day long
conversations on our way to the College. . . . When
we parted in the month of May we had become
friends, though neither of us, I think, was aware
of the depth and strength of the bond that united
us. Stevenson wrote very characteristic letters,
describing Dublin and its attractions, his quiet life
in the country, and his varied readings. He was
very happy and sanguine, and tried to cheer me,
who felt very lonely in a strange country, and
depressed by ill-health and other trials. I remember
distinctly the time when we, as it were, looked into
each other's soul and felt that we were one. This
was in reply to a letter in which I had told him of
the peace and sunshine-which had come to me from
the eighth chapter of Romans, where I saw clearly
the consolation and firm foundation of election ;
that they who believe in Jesus know that God is
for them, and that all things work together for
their good. The experimental view of this doctrine

06 STEVENSON'S CHARACTERISTICS.

struck liim very much, and Ins reply was full of
sympathy.

From that time began our real friendship.
When in 1850 he repeated to me his invitation
to spend the summer holidays with him, I gladly
accepted it. I was received by his parents with
the greatest kindness, and soon felt at home in that
truly Christian and peaceful household. Stevenson
and I were inseparable, reading and talking. He
was preparing for entering the Divinity Hall, but
general literature had great attractions for him. I
was then full of German literature — Schiller, Goethe,
Tieck, &c. ; he was steeped in the English classics ;
and so we exchanged thoughts and information. I
noticed during that summer many characteristics
which distinguished him all his life. His favourite
poet was Wordsworth. His taste in poetry was
very catholic. He already possessed the calmness,
patience, and humility which recognized the merits
and beauties of authors who were not congenial to
him. But Wordsworth was the poet whom he
loved, who both expressed and developed his own
individuality. Stevenson had an intense and lively
love of nature, and a warm appreciation of true
human nobility in every form and shape, even the
simplest and most unpretending.

After describing further the character of his
friend, he proceeds —

I looked upon him, as I have done throughout
my life since, as a gift of God's love to me, who

SAPHIB, SMIDT, AND STEVENSON. 97

had been separated from brother and sister and
rehitive of every kind since my seventeenth year.
It was settled that we, joined by Charles de Smidt,^
should live together during our divinity course at
Edinburo'h. Our circle was varied and somewhat
cosmopolitan, owing to de Smidt's Dutch and Cape
fellow-students, and to my Jewish and German
friends. . . . Our most intimate friend w^as the
Eev. Theodore Meyer, who was Assistant-Professor
of Hebrew in the New College. He came over in
the year 1848 to Scotland, after having witnessed
the exciting scenes of the Eevolution in Berlin.
Mr. Meyer came to Christianity out of Judaism and
Eationalism. Havino^ been brouo;ht into contact
with the various forms of theology at Berlin, he
had a very sympathetic and genial manner with
young men who were passing through similar phases
and conflicts ; so that, while we looked up to him
on account of his experience and learning, we felt
quite at home in his company, and he frequently
joined our Saturday expeditions.

The three, Saphir, Smidt, and Stevenson, who
lodo^ed tog;ether, dubbed themselves, in allusion to
their birthplace or lineage, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
They attended chiefly the ministry of the Eev.
Dr. Charles Brown, who w^as valued by many of
the most thoughtful in Edinburgh for his eminently

1 Charles de Smidt was of Dutch descent, and born at the
Cape. He was ordained, and died young, after a few years'
active ministerial labour in Cape Colony.

98 STEVENSON'S CHARACTER DESCRIBED.

spiritual, Scriptural, and experimental preaching.
He was a man of a singularly refined, sensitive
mind, of deep spiritual feeling, and of great
knowledge of Scripture. Saphir much valued his
ministry, and derived great benefit from it. The
view which Saphir gives, in the following extract
of his friend Stevenson's position at this time,
partly reflected his own : —

" While he was inwardly rooted in the truth,
and living a life of communion with God in prayer
and study of the Scriptures, his theological views
were as yet undeveloped, and he felt, as most
thouo;htful students do, the disturbino^ effects of
modern speculation and of neology. His mind was
candid and active ; his temperament was calm. He
was determined to examine carefully and slowly,
and to collect material diligently. The \^ ritings of
Archdeacon Hare, of Trench, Maurice, and Kingsley,
exerted a great influence on him. He was keenly
alive to the culture, breadth, and manliness which
characterized them, and fascinated by the power
and vividness of their modes of thought and ex-
pression. On the other side, there was much of
the old-fashioned representations of so-called ortho-
doxy, which repelled him, or at least offered
difliculties to be overcome. He was very sensitive
to any want of justice or candour in the treatment
of divergent views, and still more to any want of
reality or delicacy in the expression of spiritual
experiences. But the real conflict was occasioned
by the mind now coming into close contact with

HIS INDEBTEDNESS TO SAPHIR. 99

the solemn and mysterious doctrines of revelation,
with the question of revelation itself, of the
authority and inspiration of Scripture, of sin, of
atonement. He read more largely than the average
student, and perhaps with more sympathy with
what I may call vaguely the modern theology ; and
those who did not know him intimately might have
fancied that he had become one of its disciples,
while in reality he had a deep conviction that the
simple Scripture truths which he had embraced in
his childhood would in the end shiue forth to his
mind more clearly ; and that while many mis-
conceptions and unessential additions in the old
mode of thought would be removed, applications
of greater breadth would be educed and a more
healthy tone imparted."

" Mr. Stevenson," says Mrs. Stevenson in her
Memoir, "always delighted to acknowledge how
much of the impulse of his life he owed to his
friend Saphir."

100

CHAPTER X.

LETTERS OF STUDENT DAYS.

Letter to Kingsley, and Reply of Kingsley — Letters to
Donald Macleod, now Editor of Good Words, and others —
Unreal Orthodox Phraseology — Right Method of studying
Scripture — Union with Christ — The Reaction against
Shams threatening to become itself a mighty Sham —
German Literature — Striking Dream — Consciousness of
Magnetic Influence — Joyousness of Easter and Pentecost
— Ruskin — True Self-Culture — God the Source of all
Personality — Claudius and Manly Christianity — Mission
Work begun.

IN this chapter we give a series of letters written
to various friends, showing his state of mind,
and his opinions on many important questions,
during the period of his life in Edinburgh, as a
student of theology. The first is a letter to Charles
Kingsley, referred to in Kingsley s Memoirs : —

"47, Castle Street, EdhibuTcjh,

''October 21, 1852.
"Rev. Sir,

"You will be surprised, that without having the
pleasure of your acquaintance, or any kind of introduction, I
take the liberty of requesting you to accept the accompanying-
little biography of my brother ; but the wish to send you my
heartfelt thanks for your writings, which in a time of struggle
and inward conflict have so often strengthened and rejoiced
my heart, is so strong, that I venture this somewhat uncon-
ventional step.

LETTER TO CHARLES KINGSLEY. lOl

'* I am from a German family, and was educated in Berlin.
The simple, joyous faith of childhood gave way gradually, as
I became older and was brought into contact with philosophy
and poesy ; and when, owing to various circumstances, I came
a few years ago to Scotland, a rigid Calvinistic mode of appre-
hending Christianity vras little calculated to bring me back to
Christ, the true Life Transfigurer and Truth Eevealer. Yet
after struggling and seeking, it has pleased God to let me see
Christ, the perfect God Man, who alone draws us unto God's
communion, and makes us true, real men ; the dark riddles
that had perplexed me began to be solved ; in God becoming
man I saw, I felt it ; the most glorious solution of my soul's
questions, the most glorious Poetry had appeared. I was so
happy ; but although I knew myself one with many Christians
here in love to Christ, yet the number of those who view the
gospel as the leaven which is to pervade all earthly things was
very limited (I speak of my friends tlien), and at that time
your sermons and other writings gave me such joy, comfort,
encouragement.

" Allow me to thank you, and to thank the dear Lord, who
sent you to open your lips to proclaim the glorious world-
conquering gospel in this our age, which, with all its outcry
against shams, is so forgetful of the highest reality. May
your work be richly blessed I

''I will not attempt to apologize for troubling you with
these lines, but conclude by assuring you of my deep esteem
and gnititude.

" Adolph Saphir."

The answer to this letter is oiven in the first
volume of Charles Kincjsley : his Letters and
Mernoirs of his Life} It is as follows : —

^^ Ever sic y^ Xovcinhcr 1, IS 52.
" To Adolph Saphir, Esq.

''If I am surprised at your writing to me, it is th*e
surprise of delight at finding that my writings have been of

1 P. 353 of the 3rd edition.

102 CHARLES KINGSLEY'S REPLY.

use to any man, and above all to a Jew. For your nation I
have a very deep love, first, because so many intimate friends
of mine — and in one case a near connection — are Jews ; and
next, because I believe, as firmly as any modern interpreter of
prophecy, that you are still ' The Natioc,' and that you have
a glorious, as I think a culminating, part to play in the history
of the race. Moreover, I owe all I have ever said or thought
about Christianity as the idea which is to redeem and leaven
all human life, ' secular ' as well as ' religious,' to the study
of the Old Testament, without which the New is to me unin-
telligible ; and I cannot love the Hebrew books without loving
the men who wrote them. My reason and heart revolt at that
magical theory of inspiration which we liave borrowed from
the Latin Rabbis (the very men whom we call fools on every
other subject), which sinks the personality of the inspired
writer, and makes him a mere puppet and mouthpiece ; and
therefore I love your David, and Jeremiah, and Isaiah, as men
of like passions with myself — men who struggled, and doubted,
and suffered, that I might learn from them ; and loving them,
how can I but love their children, and yearn over them with
unspeakable pity ?

*' You seem to be about to become a Christian minister. In
that capacity your double education, both as a German and as
a Hebrew, ought to enable you to do for us what we really
need to have done, almost as much as those Jews among whom
your brother so heroically laboured — I mean, to teach us the
real meaning of the Old Testament, and its absolute unity
with the New. For this we want not mere ' Hebrew scholars,'
but Hebrew spirits — Hebrew men ; and this must be done,
and done soon, if w^e are to retain our Old Testament, and
therefore our New. For if we once lose our faith in the Old
Testament, our faith in the New will soon dwindle to the
impersonal ' spiritualism ' of Frank Newman, and the German
philosophasters. Now the founder of German unbelief in the
Old Testament was a Jew. Benedict Spinoza wrote a little
book which convulsed the spiritual world, and will go on
convulsing it for centuries, unless a Jew undoes what a Jew
has done. Spinoza beat down the whole method of rabbinical
interpretation — the whole theory of rabbinical inspiration ;

CHARLES KINGSLEY'S REPLY. 103

but he had nothing, as I believe, to put in their place. The
true method of interpretation, the true theory of inspiration
is yet sadly to se^k ; at least such a method and such a theory
as shall coincide with history and with science. It is my belief
that the Christian Jew is the man who can give us the key to
both — who can interpret the IS'ew and the Old Testament both,
because he alone can place himself in the position of the men
who wrote them, as far as national sympathies, sorrows, and
hopes are concerned, not to mention the amount of merely
antiquarian light which he can throw on dark passages for us,
if he chooses to read as a Jew, and not as a Kabbinist.

" I would therefore entreat you, and every other converted
Jew, not to siuk your nationality because you have become a
member of the Universal Church, but to believe with the old
converts at Jerusalem that you are a true Jew because you
are a Christian ; that as a Jew you have your special office in
the perfecting of the faith and practice of the Church, which
no Englishman or other Gentile can perform for you — neither
to Germanize or Scotticize, but try to see all heaven and
earth with the eyes of Abraham, David, and St. Paul."

The next letters we notice were written to Dr.
Donald Maeleod, present Editor of Good Words,
with whom in his student years he was very inti-
mate, and to J\liss Stevenson, a sister of Fleming
Stevenson, now Mrs. Meyer. These letters were
often full of humour. He had naturally much
sarcastic power, (which however he kept in subjec-
tion,) arising from instinctive insight into character
and motives. In private intercourse he was genial,
quaint, and amusing, and clear-sighted as to men
and things. There was great sagacity, but simpli-
city and naturalness. No man had a greater
abhorrence of pretences or shams, especially in
connection with religion, and of that crafty dip-
lomacy by which it is often attempted to guide

104 THE BIBLE AND PHILOSOPHY.

ecclesiastical and religious affairs. All mere showy,
fussy, superficial religiosity he detested, and like-
wise all religious expressions which had no lifelike

meaning.

He writes to Macleod from Aberdeen in 1849, in
a letter which shows that his opinions about the
Bible and philosophy had then become what they
remained ever after, to the close of his life. They
are expressed with remarkable clearness and force,
considerino^ that he was not then eighteen years of
age :—

"Since I last wrote you, I have been a month or so in
Holland, and have lost my eldest sister, Mrs. Schwartz, a
great trial to us all. I have been exceedingly happy in Mr.
Brown's family. He is a pious, enlightened, well-educated,
and somewhat continental-like man, and I have had great com-
fort and joy in his house, I was very happy to hear of your
brother's preferment, and I wish that he may be blessed richly
amoDg the people.

" Since I last wrote to you I have had a good deal of study,
and have gone through the philosophical systems from Thales
to Kant. The consequence of this and other things besides
was to modify essentially my old opinions. I view now the
Bible in a different light from before. I have come to see in it
a sure and unerring standard of truth, a revelation of God,
which must be received and digested and become ours, but
submitted to as purely objective, not at all subjected to our
ideas, views, or feelings.

" In fact these philosophical systems are elaborate, subtle, and
contain also truths ; some are very beautiful and captivating ;
but their darkness is great, and the full solution of these
problems which occupy our immortal soul is found only in the
Bible. It is now the object and aim of the Christian to make
God's thoughts, ideas, views, his own, so that he stands not
only under the Bible as an all-prevailing authority, but lives
it as it were ; comes to be of the same mind and taste. Of

KNOWING JESUS CHRIST. 105

course this can only be through our communion with the God-
man Jesus Christ. There are two extremes, I think ; the sub-
jective Christianity, while not giving the Bible its proper place,
lays all stress upon the felt union of the heart with Christ, and
makes the Christian life and faith flow spontaneously out of
the love of Christ in the heart, or Christian consciousness ; and
the other extreme, attaching due, if not more than due, import-
ance to the objective truth of the Bible, leaving out of con-
sideration the necessity of this objective truth becoming our
individual property, and appropriated by reason and heart.
Both, I think, are dangerous. I was for a good time deep in
the tirst extreme, and I am conscious, for my part, that not
only does such a state of mind give rise to an unsettledness
about doctrines, but it leaves the heart in constant doubt,
because it rests more upon what / feel or love, and what Christ
is in me, than upon the promises of God, and what Christ has
done for us. I don't know whether I have made myself intel-
ligible. I attach now more importance than I used to do to
the views a person holds. I see a great connection between the
will and the understanding, the head and the heart. To have
eternal life is to know Jesus Christ, of course not merely with
the reason, but with the whole mind. On the whole, this is a
promise given to you and to me, that Christ's Spirit will lead us
into all truth ; but we shall know Christ's doctrine if we are
willing to do God's Will. I begin to see the gospel truths as
thoroughly and essentially different from all systems of philo-
sophy. These are all human systems, and the truth must not
be mutilated to please some fellows, who know perhaps some
sixty old Greek books more than others, or have become crazy
in their admiration of art and their own soap-bubble specula-
tions. In saying this I have Germany in view ; but it is
quite delightful to think of the manly, Christian apostolic
exertions the German Evangelical Church has been making,
the last two years. I hope, if it is God's will, that I shall
work in connection with the German Church, and should it
turn out so, I would not grudge having spent some time in
Scotland, for I have learned, I trust, in your country many
things which a German needs more than any other. . . .

" I have a most delightful friend here, a Mr. Sachs. I never

H

106 THE BIBLE BEYOND ALL.

saw a more upright, transparent, healthy character than his,
and his information and wit render his society very delightful.
He was married a few months since. I have a College friend
with whom I am very intimate. He is from the Cape of Good
Hope, of Dutch family, and intends to go in a year to Holland
an 1 study for the Dutch Church. He is a very fine fellow in
every respect. We go together to Edinburgh, which is settled
quite."

In anotlier letter to the same he writes : —

''Aberdeen, May 1, 1850.

"Cold wind — Rain threatening — No sun — No music-
Barbarous country.

" What you say about Philosophy appears to me very true.
I think that old Socrates had attained the very height when
he said, he was the wisest because he knew that he knew
nothing With regard to Moral Philosophy, I think it would
be ^00(1 to base it on New Testament or Bible principles.
The Ethics of the New Testament would be worth while
studying. For the last three months I have been reading
classics on a grand scale, and getting on pretty well. I pur-
pose to finish the Odyssey and Iliad in a fortnight — to read
through Thncydides and the most of ^schylus and Sophocles.

*' With regard to my views, I am getting rather more
* unsound,' in the Scotch acceptation of the term. I find so
few people here who jyrpfer the Bible to everything else, be it
Confession-book or Prayer-book ; so few who can read a chapter
in the Bible without putting into it all the School theology
system and Calvinism of the Presbyterian Church ; and so
few who have toleration for anybody who has not the same
views as they. A lady, the other day, said to me that it was
a sign whether a man was a Christian or not, if he keeps
the Sabbath. I repled that I never read that in the New
Testament, but 1 remember the verse : * Hereby you shall be
known as My discipLs, if you love one another.' I can tell
you, my good frien'l, that I am not at all so weak-minded as
not to see the beauty and the advantages of a well-observed
Sabbath, but whenever it is made the essence and centre of
Christianity, it is as anti-Christian as Popery itself. What

TO WHOM SHALL WE GO? 107

an easy thing to sit four hours in church, and spend the rest of
the Sunday in a close room, and then during the six week-days
to live only to oneself ! . . . I have not read any Philosophy for
a long time, only David Hume, who puts me into a fever and
makes me semi-delirious whenever I take him up. Such con-
sistent sophistry never was. Yet who can help admiring that
bold man! The English are always too strongly decided on one
side. When they begin to philosophize they destroy everything,
both human mind and material world. Berkeley and Hume
have attacked both world and mind. Show me a German who
has been so extravagant. If scepticism begins in a British
mind, he is cooler, milder, more consistent in it than any
German, and I think we may look for the w^orst infidelity —
Materialism — on this island.

'' With best wishes for all Islanders, specially yourself,
" Your affectionate friend,

"A. Saphik."

Writino; to the same friend from Edinbur2[li,
where he had gone to study in the winter, he

says : —

" Stevenson, and a Cape of Good Hope friend, and I live
together, right merrily.

" I study Calvin on the New Testament, Luther, Jeremy
Taylor, and Church Fathers. Besides English modern litera-
ture, I read now Carlyle's Life of Sterling.

"Donald, I tell you Carlyle without Christ is as great a
sham as the whiners, and perhaps greater. I admire Carlyle,
but I nearly cried to-day to see that so honest a soul cannot
understand the truest — the holiest One — that ever lived —
Jesus Christ.

" i\ly demi-gods are tumbling down — Schiller, Goethe, Phi-
losophers, — this Carlyle too. To whom shall we go? Thou
alone hast the word of eternal life !

"Onward, then! — God is better than all the pretty and
gorgeous iaols.

" I have a meeting of German boys and gii-ls every Sunday,
and give them an address. I enjoy this little work. I have

108 UNION WITH CHRIST.

enough teaching to keep me in bread-and-cheese ; but as I wish
to go soon to Germany (for I don't know why I should stay
here), I want to make as much money by teaching or trans-
latinsr from German as I can."

Writings in the winter of 1851 to Miss Steven-
son, when he was a student in Edinburgh, he

says : —

" I begin to see a deeper meaning in the current orthodox
phraseology ; but it ought to be translated into our language.
My views of the Bible become daily more Pascal- and Claudius-
like ; that is, I see it as a mystery, light and life intelligible
only to the heart-reason — chords which give music only by a
similar experience. I think the constant and thoughtful
reading of the Bible the greatest and best means of self-
culture. Only let us read with calm historic minds, and like
children, and not expect words to have diiferent meanings in
the Bible from anywhere else. I find it both instructive and
comforting to read parts of the Bible corresponding to your
mental state at the present ; the Psalms especially can be
read in that way. I think we should strive to view man
as a unity ; thought, language, acts, they are internally
connected with the One, the being that says /. Therefore,
good words are a sign of a good man, if they are his words,
not put on, but Ids as much as his hands are his ; and the
like of good works. So if the man is good, in everything he
will be good ; good and bad, for ' evil is always present with
me.' But Christ cleaves and cuts off what is bad in leaves
and flowers, — let us only be rooted in Him. This comparison
of an organic miion with Christ (John xv.) is my greatest
comfort. Were we mechanicallij tied to Christ, the link might
be broken ; but an organic union of branch and root, vine and
branches, is inward, and becomes necessary, eternal. So we
are in Christ. And as a tree, that becomes always more
firmly rooted, will extend branches that widen and bring-
more fruit, we must strike daily deeper and deeper root in
Christ (be connected daily), and thus increase in strength,
beauty, and holiness. I must write you some time or other

THE EVERLASTING TEAS. 109

my thoughts on organic union with Christ, and organic
development, but I am sure you will think very much the
same thing, if you consider John xv. and the like passages
in that way."

Ill the same letter he proceeds to speak of
questions of the day : —

"I do think that the reaction agfainst shams is threateninjj
to become a mighty sham itself. I am afraid of all Emerson-
admiring Christians ; either that they deceive themselves, or
are deceived. It is an advantage to know that twice two is
not five ; but, after all, except we know that it is four, we
cannot be good arithmeticians. But let us come from the
everlasting Noes into the Everlasting Yeas. Not as a mighty
Corpse, but as moved by God's Spirit, let us see the world !
God only is the real self-subsisting Entity — the To Be. Only
what is in Him, and as far as it is in Him, is; only that
which is viewed in connection with Him, is viewed as it
really is. Apply this to science, theology, history, everyday
life, and we shall soon come to know with certainty Realities
— Yeas. The Beality and Yea has come to us in tangible
visible shape; I feel as if Thomas had put my very finger
into Christ's side. I have as great — and greater — evidence
of Heaven, Life, Redemption, Eternity, as of the existence
of this table I write upon. To this, and along with this,
comes the world of inward experience ; not only of mine,
but of yours, and Krummacher of Berlin, and of Claudius,
fifty years ago, and all the different hearts that for six
thousand years have been living in the quiet Yeas and not
in the Noes. Kingsley is a noble man, who sees everything
in Christ ; and I am afraid, till we come to this, we see
nothing in Christ."

He writes in another letter about German liter-
ature, and literature in general : —

" I am sure German literature will give you many a
pleasant hour. We have had a noble line from Klopstock
down to Uhland, and in that garden there are noble fiowers;

110 A STRIKING DREAM.

yea, the poison flowers even and weeds have beauty, and are
attractive.

" Do you know I have a sad feeling that I love Poetry and
Art, when it is also withoat God and truth, with too great
fervour ; too much with my heart ! I had oncp a dream that
I went to heaven, and when asked whom I wished to see, I
said first Goeihe, then Shakes^ere ; and then Peter looked
at me with a glance of pity and reproach, and I burst out,
crjing, 'Let me see Jesus Christ.' I dreamt that in 1848,
when I was a fanatic Poesy and Art worshipper, and I can't
tell you how often 1 remember this dream. Is it not strange ?
Yes, it is not easy to love Go I above all, and nothing like
him. God Himself keep our hearts aright, and mould our
characters !

" Yet Goethe and Shakespere are noble; yea, even prophets,
perhaps, a la Balaam.

" I wish we had Cliristian Carlyles, Thackerays, Dickenses,
&c., but certainly the new age is coming and we may expect
great things. With regard to Germany, I hope very much
indeed. A noble Church, a Christianity where the whole
man, intellect, feeling, imagination is shaped and transformed.

" Foolish Solomon, you say. Yes, I am. Alas ! I know
it too well. I have a very strange nature. I feel, when
others would never think of feeling; yet notwithstanding
these anomalies, that somewhat pernicious universality, I am
glad I can feel intensely for men, churches, nations, entirely
unconnected with me. I don't know what it is, but I believe
there is a kind of magnetic influence which chains me to a
good number of beings — an influence of which I have been
conscious, and exercise now and then by force of will. By
magnetic I mean power of spirit upon spirit."

He writes on tlie New Year : —

" So the Kew Year is in ! Have you noticed how beautiful
man is at Old Year's end and New Year's beginning ; how
the undercurrent of love and affection, cheerfulness and
earnestness breaks through accretions of time and worldliness
at that time; and how features long dead or dead-like are
then transfigured and smile 1 It is such a noble thing, and

JOY OF EASTER AND PENTECOST. Ill

would we had more such times in the year ! — nay, the whole
old Christian almanack would I fain bring back, if I could,
without frightening my anti-popish brethren, and without
encour-iging my anti-free lom brethren.

** I do not know whether you have ever felt the deep and
holy meaning of Easter — after the earnest winter, and before
the coming of spring, lying in the heart of the year, as the
very central point of our Christian life ; or the joyous solemn
meaning of Pentecost, when nature is in her glory, and the
blessing of God has covered the whole earth with beauty;
the symbol of the Spirit summer, which came on that first
Pentecost day, and comes ever since.

"Verily, I am thankful that that which appears to me as
the very ideal of a spiritual heaven — transfigured life ; of
seeing Divine truth in all earthly phenomena ; of penetrating
through the symbol to the Prototype ; of living continually,
in clem, was meiites Vaters ist ; that this idea has been realized
— a{)proximately at least — in the Church.

"I think it beautiful and useful for me at least, for minds
constituted like mine \ but it would not do, and in England
as well as in Germany it has found too ardent and one-sided
admirers. But as long as we make not a means an end we
are safe."

In one of his letters he speaks of Ruskin : —

"Delightful lectures by Ruskin, who has a very earnest
view of history, and is keenly alive to the want of veneration
and truth of modern ages, and appreciates the Middle Ages,
as most men who have faith and imagination do."

The following letter is full of practical philo-
sophy : —

" Have you not learned something, been influenced in some
way, however trifling, seen something, which you will re-
member either by itself or uuitedly with other things, in
every human being you have had the smallest intercourse
with? I think, if you examine closely, you will find it so.
And as in every human being there lives some rays, some

112 PRACTICAL PHILOSOPHY.

features, some chords of the All-light, the All-beauty, the
All-music, God shows Himself to us, mirrored in men ; in
one man perfectly — Geloht sei Jesus Christus. Look at Paul,
Augustine, Luther, they are types of one class of Christians ;
or Peter, James, Bernard of Clairvaux, Calvin — another class ;
or John, and my heart wishes, next to him, Neander; look
at every variety of Christian character, every kind and shade
of natural gift, temperament, and nature transfigured and
leavened by the gospel ; in every peculiarity and individual
feature you will find a feature of God ; and all Christians
together — every one with his individuality — will reflect the
full, perfect image of God. In heaven, in the Kingdom of
God, not one soul is superfluous, or a repetition of another,
but every one, the very smallest, is needed to make up the
fullness, as all chords in a harmony.

"Now have I made myself understood? What meaning
does this give to our personality and individuality 1 You
see Fichte's ' / Am ' has made a deep impression upon me,
but my ideas of the I are based on my ideas of the Thou
which is above us, and in Whom we are. But I cannot deny,
that although I do not belong to any school of Germany, the
modern Philosophy has done me the very greatest service,
and I think people might as well teach the Ptolemaean
system again, or recall yesterday, as ignore the influence of
Philosophy on Theology. . . . Some one says quaintly, yet
well : ' He has religious life and knowledge who can say I
and Thou with the understanding of his heart.' That is,
who is conscious of his individuality, the existence and destiny
of his personality, and can say I, and at the same time knows
that his I is based upon and lives in a Thou : the Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ." Self-culture in the true sense
consists in the development of the indi\iJualifcy as it stands
in relation to or connection with God.

" Now, men and philosophers, who recognize the I but not
the Thou, always refer man to himself, to be true to himself,
and let this self develop freely. This is only half the truth,
for the I without the Thou, and unless in the Thou, cannot
live and prosper. (Good-night, Mr. Emerson, here we part.)
The Bible says. Cultivate the (/ift that is within you ; let

CLAUDIUS AND MANLY CHRISTIANITY. 113

Christ be formed within you ; abide — not in yourself — in
J/e, and / in you. Hence (do you see the step?) Christian
self-culture consists in looking upon Christ, and conforming
to His image, in remaining in connection and intercourse with
God, in removing all outward and inward obstacles which
prevent Christ from being formed within us, in eradicating
all remnants of sin in disposition, will, feeling, which mars
the image of God in us.

" The Christian sense of self-culture is altogether different
from the worldly and Christless sense. iSJ^ay, in this point
to my mind all questions concentrate ; all unbelief, infidelity,
Carlyleism, Emersonianism. The question is, Man without
God, or Man and God in God.

"I said, eradicating all remnants of sin which belong to
self-culture ; for it is clear, since we are destined to be perfect
as our Father, since God has chosen us before the foundation
of the world, that we should be holy and without blame
before Him in love (Eph. i. -i), — it is clear from this, that
then we will have our full, pure individuality ^ lohen loe are
without sin ; that is, a Christian's sin belongs not to his
individuality, and that in becoming like Christ we truly
become ourselves.

"Is not heaven the perfect union with God, the perfect
life of the individual in God? Is not this a glorious hope
and prospect, and it will strengthen us to fight against that
deep mystery, Sin and the Devil ? "

Speaking of Claudius, lie tlius refers to the per-
vasive manliness of real Christianity : —

"Claudius is a reality, and a noble specimen of the true
Christians, who have not ceased being men when they became
pious (if it were possible), but embrace Christ with their
whole being, in all its faculties, powers, feelings, gifts ; who
do not read to God a tacit lecture as some whiners do, saying
the world is bad, and all is vanity, and poetry is godless,
wine is a delusion, and love heathenish idolatry; but who
know what it means to live in this world, and not loith it,
and yet as a heaven-citizen. Ah, this Christianity has such

114 LETTER FROM HOME.

a chemical power of separating from it all the dirt and froth
and earthy clay that has been amalgamated, and baked, and
kneaded into it, th:)t there is no fear but we shall yet see it
overcoming and penetrating all that is good in our nineteenth
century develo[)ment, and appearing in a nobler, fuller, grander
shape than hitherto.

It was a deep sorrow to Saphir, in his student
days, that he could never visit his own home at
Pesth, as he would at once have been obliged to
enter the army. He refers to this in a letter to
Miss Stevenson : —

*'I received such an affectionate letter from home ! Almost
depressing, such a shower of love, and brought back the
time vAhen I was such a spoiled, petted child. My sister
Johanna sends me a list of her favourite pianoforte pieces.
I send them to you, as I have nobody here to play them to
me. My gooil mother is so anxious to see me, and I cannot
get home on account of the abominable Austrian Government."

He writes from Edinburgh to Macleod in refer-
ence to the memoir of his brother Philipp : —

"I am very glad that you are going to notice my brother's
biography. Don't allude to anything connected with politics,
it would be very itupriident, because of the despotic Govern-
ment of Austria. I don't know what has struck you in his
life ; I am sure his child-like faith and energy have impressed
you ; also his objectivity, trusting to Christ, not his feelings.
One thought I would like all wlio read it to notice : that a
Jew is a human being, and becomes a Christian even through
conviction of sin and longing a^'ter God and attraction of
Christ, just as the others. But you will see yourself.

" As for myself, don't you see how I have kept myself
altogether in the background with my opinions or views ? I
tried to show my brother, and not my meditations on and
about him. If I have succeeded in this, I shall be very
proud.

THE QUESTION OF BAPTISM. 115

" Stevenson will be here in a week.

" I have not yet got enough teaching ; it is a great bore,
and especially where one has to do with Philistines."

He discusses the question of Baptism in the
following letter : —

" The question about Baptism is rather difficult. But to
avoid extremes is not difficult. Let us hold fast these two
points : 1. That the one thing needful consists in the change
of heart effected by God's inclining it to surrender itself to
Christ, and that upon this and this alone dej ends salvation.
2. That no one of Christ's institutions is mere ceremony or
si^rn, but reality, spirit, channel of God's communication of
Divine influence, which two points avoid the extremes of
Baptismal Begeneration and Quakerism.

*' There is some difference between the Church of Scotland
and that of England in the definition of B.iptism. . . . The
Chm-ch of England definition leaves out of view the state of
the recipient ; in the Church of Scotland the benefits of the
New Covenant are represented as sealed and applied to
believers."

In letters from London dated October 1853,
he consults his friend Macleod as to taking a
degree in Glasgow of B.A. He refers also to a
stay of a fevv months in Hamburg. This was the
year before he went there as a missionary of the
Irish Presbyterian Church. In the second letter,
he says : —

"My dear Donald,

" I am very much obliged for your kind letter. The
only fact on which I am in doubt is, whether my not having
been in Glasgow as a first year student won't prevent my
taking the degree. ^

*' I am doubtful whether my return to the continent will be

^ He afterwards got the degree of B.A.

116 MISSION^ WORK BEGUN.

possible. My case is very simple; but my poor father, the
quietest man in the world, is, on account of his connection with
the mission, odious to the Government, and I have perhaps
from this reason greater difficulties than I might have other-

wise.

"I worked this summer for three months in Hamburg
among the Jews and the Christians (poor wretches both), and
I am very glad I did it, because it drove the cobwebs out of
my head, and made me think more of Christianity as a power
in life. Besides, it gave me opportunities to practise preaching,
and, on the whole, it has had a decided influence on my
character.

" I likewise saw Harms in Hanover, the holiest man I ever
saw. Perhaps you have read about him and his missionary
Institute, as your brother ^ knows about him. I stayed a
week with him. Here in London I have been looking and
trying my powers in Houndsditch and the immediate vicinity;
and so you see, that this summer, though full of change
and variety, was yet a very practical and working time with
me. It is very kind of you to wish me to come to Glasgow,
and I assure you, if things turn out so, I enjoy the prospect
very much. You are just the fellow to do me good, since I
want to be as practical and English in my tone of mind as I
can. I have taken a great hatred to hair-splitting and
mystification. Since it has pleased God to let us live only the
tenth part of the lives of the antediluvian people, we can't
alford time for it."

From this letter we see that Saphir was uow
actively preparing for work among the Jews, to
which he desired to devote himself. For this pur-
pose he had paid a visit to Hamburg, and after his
return, he had " tried his powers " in London, in
Houndsditch and the immediate vicinity. The
Jewish work was that on which his heart was set.
The hope of engaging in it had stimulated him in

1 Dr. Norman Macleod.

LOVE OF JEWISH MISSION WORK. 117

all the difficulties of his student life, for he had
had to su23port himself during almost the whole
of his College career. Now that this was finished,
he longed to begin active labour among his kins-
men. And though he had soon to retire from
the direct Jewish mission work, his heart was in
it to the end, and he was in fact, if not in name,
all his life afterwards, a great Jewish missionary.

118

CHAPTER XL

OKDINATION TO THE JEWISH WOEK.

Licence as a Preacher, and Ordination in Belfast — Dr. Cooke
presides — His Marriage — Mrs. Saphir's Character and
Influence— Hamburg — His Idea of Jewish Missions — His
Remarkable Tracts — Israel Pick's Influence — Threatened
with Military Service by Austria — His Views as to
Methods of Work not sustained by the Mission Committee
— He resigns.

AFTER Adolph Sapliir had completed his studies
in 1854, he was strongly reeoninri ended by
Dr. Keith to the Irish Presbyterian Church as a
missionary to the Jews. To Jewish mission work
he desired to devote his life, and therefore gladly
accepted the opening. He was licensed by the
Presbytery of Belfast, the celebrated Dr. Cooke
acting as Moderator of Presbytery, and speaking
of him with much cordiality. He was ordained
by the same Presbytery as missionary to the Jews.
A few days later he was married to Miss Sara
Owen, who belonged to a family much respected
in the neis^hbourhood of Dublin. This marriage
was a most happy one. His wife was of a cheerful
disposition, with much humour, and considerable

HIS MARRIAGE. 119

ability. She adored her husband, and watched
over him with the most tender care. Never were
people more devoted to each other. Mrs. Lawson,
the widow of Judge Lawson of Dublin, and a
very intimate friend of the Saphirs, having known
Mrs. Saphir long before her marriage, writes :
— "Dr. Saphir's health from early youth was so
frasfile that he could never have lived so long
had it not been for the extreme care his wife took
of his health." This was the impression of many
who knew them best, and was, we believe, correct.
Her watchful anxiety put Mrs. Saphir often in
an awkward position ; as she seemed to many to
be unnecessarily jealous of her husband receiving
visitors, attending meetings, and undertaking en-
gagements. She was, whether right or wrong, only
actuated by devotion to him. They lived together
— scarcely ever separated — for thirty-seven years.
She was everything to him, and they were bound
to each other with extraordinary affection.

Shortly after their marriage they left for their
new home. Hamburg, one of the great commercial
centres, famous for the grandeur of its buildings
and the beauty of its situation, has a large number
of Jewish residents of all classes, many of them men
of wealth and position. It is one of the most
godless of cities, the church attendance in propor-
tion to the population being infinitesimally small.
The Irish Jewish mission effected good not only
among the Jews, but among the Christians.

Adolph Saphir, in his youthful vigour and

120 TRACTS FOR THE JEWS.

inteDse love of his nation, and belief in its
future, — a belief which was a passion with him all
his life long, — had ideas of his own, which went
far beyond the gathering of a few converts, or
even of a small Christian congregation. He hoped
to influence Judaism in a larger way through the
press, by proving in tracts addressed to the Jews,
that Christianity was the natural and necessary
outcome of Judaism, as revealed in their own
Scriptures ; that Jesus was the true promised
Messiah.

He had naturally great literary talent, not only
as a didactic teacher, but as an imaginative writer,
and would have been famous both as a poet
and novelist, had he devoted himself to literature.

His tracts were written in an attractive style,
the arguments being carried on through imaginary
conversations. He thus refers to them at a later
period : — ■'' During my short stay in Hamburg, I
wrote several pamphlets for the Jews. These did
not remain unnoticed in Jewish circles. They were
cordially recommended by men like Dr. Wichern
and Da Costa. They have since been republished at
different times and widely circulated. They have
been translated into English and Dutch." Had he
been able to carry out this method of working in
the manner he intended, there must soon have
been inquiry among the Jewish community ; but,
as is often the case, the new methods were not
approved.

David Livingstone was utterly condemned by the

WHO TS THE APOSTATE?' 12]

London Missionary Society's Committee, when he
set out on his great African explorations instead of
confining his energies to the small station allotted
to him. Saphir's new methods were not approved,
and he could not get the means to carry them
out. So he resigned his position and salary, which
was, from the worldly point of view, a very
hazardous step, seeing that he was then quite
unknown in this country as a preacher.

He and his wife cast themselves adrift from a
fixed appointment, waiting on God's guidance to
direct them to some other field of labour. It is
important that this should be borne in memory.
Whether he was right or wrong, as regards the
committee and his colleagues, he made a great
sacrifice to the conscientious conviction of duty.

As the tracts, above referred to, were almost his
first publications, and have been much used and
blessed in Jewish mission work for many years
past, it may be interesting to note them briefly: —

One of them is entitled, ' Wer ist der A20ostat ? '
(' Who is the Apostate ? ') It is divided into two
sections — First Evening and Second Evening. The
reading of the Haggada, Liturgy of the Passover,
is ended, and the people sit sorrowfully around the
table. A young married pair are holding the feast
for the first time in their own house, and have
invited some friends to spend the evening with
them. One of these friends is an old man with
deep-sunk, half-closed eyes, an old and trusted
family friend. Another is a young man of slight

122 'WHO IS THE APOSTATE?'

build, with light, well- arranged hair, who looks
through his spectacles with a sagacious and self-
possessed look ; he is a student, the brother of the
young wife ; the third is a friend of the husband
in his youth, who has been many years abroad,
and returned to Germany just a few years before.
He has taken the little sister of the philosopher on
his knee, and asks her if she knows why this feast
is observed on this day of the year. She answers
quickly that it is the Passover. As he is going
to explain further, the old family friend breaks in
with the remark that it brings back so vividly the
long past, and makes them feel united with their
fathers in all parts of the world, and sends back
the thought to the wonderful deliverance from the
house of bondage in Egypt.

The young philosopher interrupts, " That's all
very beautiful and poetic ; but it is opposed to
sound understanding, or rather pure reason, to
believe in these as real events ; we must separate
the kernel from the shell. The idea which lies
at the basis is true ; and the ceremony, though
rather wearisome and unintelligible to us young
people, may promote morality."

The old man is indignant, and asserts that the
observance of the day is like a monument of brass,
reminding of an actual event of history, as the
observance of October 18 reminds one of the battle
of Leipsic.

Then the third friend who had been lono- abroad
expresses his cordial agreement with the old man ;

WHO IS THE APOSTATE r 123

but charges his kinsmen with the mere memory
of a historical fact, while forgetful of the God
of their fathers, and shows by quotations from the
prophets that they had changed altogether the idea
of God ; they worshipped an unknown, concealed,
general Deity, but not the God who led them
out of Egypt, and gave to them His thoughts
and commandments. The young man listened
contemptuously ; but the old man repeated the
sad words of Jeremiah — God mourninor over the
departure of His peo^Dle — their forgetfulness of Him.

The stranger says the thought of God is terrible
to one who does not know and love God as his
Father, but only as the Creator of the planets, the
Architect of the universe, the Ruler of the bound-
less expanse. Does a child know his father as the
physician, or the lawyer, or the man of learning ?
Does he not rather know him as the man whom
he loves, and in whom he trusts, who protects him,
nourishes him, loves him, teaches him, and does all
for him ?

The conversation is continued, the stranger
showing clearly that the Jews had lost the true
idea of God, and leading them through their own
Scriptures to Christ as the true representative of
God. The argument is maintained with power
and clearness and freshness, and is well fitted to
impress Christians as w^ell as Jews. The real
apostate, he shows finally, is he who rejects God
as revealed and prophesied of, viz. Jesus the
Messiah.

124 ' WHO IS A JEW?

This tract has had a large circiTlation , having
been employed in connection with many of the
missions to the Jews, and has been the means of
great blessing.

Another tract was entitled, ' Wer ist ein Jade ? '
(' Who is a Jew V) " Conversation betw^een a Jew
m name and a true Jew." The parties who con-
verse are called Neophilus and Theophilus. Neo-
philus begins by quoting the famous passage of
Lessing about the t^vo rings. You know^ the wise
saying which the distinguished Lessing puts in the
mouth of Nathan the Wise. No one can tell which
is the true ring, for the skilled artist has made two
other rings so like the first, that even the maker of
the pattern ring could not decide. That describes
my position as regards religions ; one is as good as
another ; each considers his own the true one, and
is in this belief pious and blessed. Besides, my
religion is simple. The Lord our God is one Lord.
Theophilus, who is a Christian Jew, shows how^
these loose views in regard to false religions are
opposed to the law and the prophets, and how the
Jews have lost the true idea of God, as a Being to
be loved and adored. The argument is chiefly
against the Neologian Jews, of whom there are now
a very large body in Germany ; but it tells also
against the old-fashioned orthodox Jews, who have,
in a dry monotheism, lost the idea of the God of
loving-kindness and tender mercies revealed to
their fathers, and of the need of sacrifice as an
atonement for sin.

ISRAEL PICK\S INFLUENCE. 125

The method adopted by Saphir, as a Jewish
missionary, must undoubtedly have told on the
Jews, as he adapted himself precisely to their
state of mind, and wrote vividly and attract-
ively. This was a kind of work for which he was
specially fitted. He possessed even more power as
a writer in German than in English — popular as
his writings have been in this country. Had he
remained in Jewish mission work, he might have
supplied a literature that would have been of
great influence in all the Jewish missions. In a
preface signed by Delitzsch and Faber in 1889
to a new edition of the Tract ' Wer ist der
Apostatf they say, "When it was first written,
thirty years ago, the writer was a young un-
known theologian in Hamburg, who, with his friend
Israel Pick, laboured there for the conversion of
the people of Israel." This Pick was a man of
considerable power, a convert under Mr. Edwards,
Free Church Jewish missionary at Breslau, who
influenced Saphir very much in his views of the
great future of the Jews. They then proceed to
speak in the preface of the great assistance given
to them in their work for Israel by Saphir, during
the previous ten years. " Without Adolph Saphir's
active help, neither the preparation nor the com-
pletion of Lichtenstein s Hebrew Coinmenfary on
the Neiv Testament would have been possible."

Saphir's heart was to the end above all else in
Jewish mission work, not chiefly because the Jews
were his kinsmen, Ijut because of the certain

126 SAPHIR LEAVES HAMBURG.

promises of God to them, of the glorious future
which he saw before them, and of the blessing to
be expected through them to the world.

The circumstances referred to led him to leave
Hamburg, and give up the direct Jewish work.
There was an additional difficulty as to his residing
in Germany, owing to the Austrian Government
having a claim upon him for military service.
This Government was then under the strong in-
fluence of reaction, after the war of 1849, and
would, if they could have obtained his surrender
by the North German authorities, as they were
trying to do, have insisted on his entering the
army, however unfitted physically for such service.
After about a year's connection with the mission,
he left Hamburg and went to Glasgow in 1855.
He was thus beginning life anew, casting himself
adrift, and trusting absolutely to the guidance and
care of God.

12

CHAPTEE XII.

MINISTRY TO GERMANS IN GLASGOW.

Norman Macleod's Interest and Friendship — Letter of Principal
Brown on his AYork in Glasgow — Letters to a Friend —
His Work among the Germans — His Anxieties — Jowett's
Book on Paul — Birth of his Daughter — Call to South
Shields.

WHEN Saphir returned to Scotland, he had no
definite plan as to future work. He sought
out old friends in Glasgow, especially Dr. Norman
Macleod and Dr. David Brown, and consulted
with them. Dr., now Principal Brown, thus
describes to us the interest they felt, and the sug-
gestion made by Dr. Macleod, which was carried
out : —

"Dr. Norman Macleod called on me, and said
the Germans had been so kind to him when in
Germany that he wished to repay it in a sub-
stantial way, and proposed that he and I should
engage one of the churches for Saphir to preach in
every Sunday evening (it was winter), to the Buy
a Broom German girls, who were stray waifs, aud
in great danger of losiug their morals. I went in

128 'BUY A BROOM' GERMAN GIRL'S.

with all my heart to this, and we first called a
meeting of the Germans residing in Glasgow, asking
them to join us. They said, 'We don't want
German preaching. Some of us have English
wives, and go to the English-speaking churches.'
' Yes ; but it is not for you, but these poor girls for
whom no one cares, and they arc your country-
women.' This touched them, and they agreed to
come the first evening and encourage the girls to
come. And we two agreed to be there, and after
the service to go to the pulpit together, state what
object we had in view, and exhort both the girls
there and the audience to help this work. The
sermon was simple and beautiful, on ' Our Father
which art in heaven.' The first words of it were
these: — 'This could be said by our first parents.
But when they fell out with God, they fell out with
one another, and woman was trampled on by man.
It is Christ that brings both together, and woman
owes to Him all she now is, and we can 7ioiv say,
" Our Father." ' We then, each of us, praised the
sermon and commended the work."

Of this period he says in a short abstract of his
life. " In Glasgow I preached in German during six
months. The church, which had been put at my
disposal for this purpose, was fairly Avell attended,
the congregation consisting of several German
families, governesses, young men of business, and
working-people. During my stay at Glasgow, I
translated Daniel and the Kevelation into Eno^lish."

Durincr this residence in Glasgow he wrote at

MINISTRY TO GERMANS IN GLASGOW. 129

times to a warm friend, the Eev. James Williamson,
a remarkable man, to whom he was much attached,
who had given himself to continental work, but
died early of consumption, of whom the Rev.
W. T. Johnston, of Worcester, his nephew, thus
writes : —

" My uncle was for some time minister of the Protestant
Church of Louvain, Belgium. He died in 1856. My uncle
and he (Adolph, as he always called him) were like brothers.
Saphir frequently visited my grandfather's house, at Greenock,
during the time of his studentship at Glasgow University, and
it was some time between '47 and '50 that I first came to
know him, and I have still a vivid recollection of his appear-
ance, then thin and pale, gentle-looking and retiring, with
a foreign accent, that sounded to me very pleasant — in most
other respects, much as he was to the end.''

In one of these letters to Mr. Williamson,
referring to his services, he says : —

'' I had the first German service last Sunday. The attend-
ance was encouraging. It may interest you to hear something
about the service. I began with the Segensgruss and a hymn.
Then prayed, and read the Gospel and Epistle. After this I
said the Creed and the Lord's Prayer. We sang again, and
then the sermon followed. Prayer, singing, and the bene-
diction concluded the service. I don't know whether you like
the Creed. My chief reason for saying it is to confess before
the people the leading facts of salvation. As I call myself
neither Lutheran nor Calvinistic, they ought to know at once
that I am not hekenntnisslos. I think I heard you once
remark, that you thought the Apostolic Cieed defective, as
it mentioned not regeneration, &c. The people were very
attentive ; but, I assure you, it is difiicult to preach to people,
of whom you know well that they do not understand Christ's
language. I am very careful about style, delivery, etc., because
I know these things are to theiu of first importance, and 1

130 LETTERIS TO A FRIEND.

am anxious to do all in my power to induce them to listen.
There are many Jews among them. I am going to call on
some families next week, and hope to see soon whether there
is a field for me this winter.

" Since I saw you, I have received good news from Pesth.
The Government have given at last permission to the Evan-
gelical Party of the Protestant Church to erect a Theological
Faculty. The Professors have been appointed, and are lehendige
Manner. This will be better for Hungary than Kossuth's work.

" I am busy now, and very thankful that I am, for I find
it difficult to be patient, and am often troubled with unbelief
and anxiety. And yet what a miserable thing it would be to
have only a layer of occupations separating me from doubt
and distrust ! "

111 another letter he says : —

''You will be glad to hear that I had a good attendance
last evening, better than on the former one. I preached on
Thomas' unbelief. I see many Jewish faces in the church,
and feel myself constrained to preach more in a missionary
way than I would to an ordinary congregation. Next Sunday
being Reformationsfest, I intend to speak on the Reformation
from Christ's words, ' Come unto Me, all ye that labour,' &c.

"I am reading just now Jowett's new book on Paul. I
like the style, but not the matter. He has no idea of the
Divinity of the Old Testament and its dispensation, and sees
therefore many Jeivish views in Paul. Dr. Brown tells me the
book is making much noise in England, and I think he intends
reviewing it.

" I did not think the translation of Auberlen would give
me so much to do ; the proof sheets are horrible, and enough
to cure any one of the furor scribendi.

"I suppose Meyer wrote you of his ordination, and the
testimonial his German congregation gave him. I am reading
very little now, and think I won't undertake a translation
again ; translating Auberlen has been useful to me. I see
Stanley has written on Palestine. Harms in Herrmansburg
was accused before the Consistory of heresy, and his enemies

BIRTH OF HIS DAUGHTER. 131

wished to degrade him from his pastoral dignity and imprison
him ; but they did not succeed."

In the next letter he tells of the birth of his
daughter : —

'"To day I have to give you great news. My wife brought
me yesterday ein Meines Tochterlein. She is remarkably
well, I am thankful to say.

" I don't agree with you in your estimate of Harms ; he is
very orthodox, that is from a Lutheran point of view. I think
Shields promises well. Pray for me; I believe more firmly
in the power of prayer than I used to do. What a haze of
sophistication, Wissenschaftlichkeit and obscurations of simple
truths is that, out of which I am but gradually emerging ! I
mean with my heart and inward life ', theoretically it is easy
enough to get rid of it, but the evil inflaences remain very
long.

''I am in great distress about my friend Pick, the Jew, who
is falling into strange exaggerations about working miracles,
&c. I love him very much, and think he is yet to do some-
thing for the poor Jews. It is very mysterious that he has
taken such a course."

The services were continued from Sabbath to
Sabbath with much interest and success. A sum
of £100 was raised to sustain them ; but the
position was altogether uncertain for the future.

Saphir continued in Glasgow for more than half
a year, enjoying the friendshi]3 of many Christian
people, and bringing to Christ and strengthening
the souls of many of these poor Germans to whom
he ministered.

132

CHAPTER XIII.

BEGINNING OF LIFE-WORK IN ENGLAND.

Settlement at South Shields — Mr. J. C. StevensoD, M.P., and
Mrs. Stevenson — His First Experiments as to the Method
of Delivery — The Method adopted — His Idea of Preaching
— His Appearance and Manner — His Book on Conversion
— Eev. James Hamilton, D.D. — Death of his only Child.

AT this time, without any plan of his own, but
by the special guidance of the Providence of
God, he was about to enter on his great life-work
as an English preacher. On the suggestion of an
old College friend, he was invited to preach at
Lay gate Presbyterian Church, South Shields. This
friend was Mr. Stevenson, architect, of Bayswater,
London, whose father was the proprietor of large
chemical works at South Shields, and had erected
this church for the benefit of his workmen and the
neighbourhood. Here Saphir constantly enjoyed
the society of Mr. James Cochrane Stevenson, who
has since been for many years Member of Parlia-
ment for South Shields, and who, as an elder, was
most active in the congregation ; also of his wife,
Mrs. Stevenson, daughter of the Eev. Dr. Ander-
son of Morpeth, a minister wtII known in the

SETTLEMENT AT SOUTH SHIELDS. i:>r,

Church of Scotland, and then in the Free Church,
and afterwards in the English Presbyterian Church.
After his first visit to Shields, to his friend Mr.
Williamson, he writes : —

•• I have since been in Shields and preached there two
Sundays. I like the place and the people. They are ^;?as^*V,
and I think I can see suitabilities on both sides, if I may use
such an expression. I have since heard from Mr. Stevenson,
who takes the chief interest in the church, that the congrega-
tion is going to give me a call — and I feel much inclined to
look on this neutral ground as very desirable for me in my
present position. The place is increasing rapidly, and I would
have a good field among the working-men, who are great
readers."

The call \Yas given very cordially, and as
cordially accepted.

Here he really commenced his career as an
English preacher. He had at first some difiiculty
as to the best methods to be employed, and began,
we believe, by writing out and by reading his
sermons. He found however that there was too
much restraint in this, and soon adopted the
method he always used afterwards, of thinking
out his subject with care, writing out portions,
and then speaking freely, without even notes, in
the pulpit. But that there was careful prepara-
tion, and not mere extempore speaking, was evident
from the closely connected and compact thought
of each sermon. He had a wonderful power of
compressing in short space, a large and compre-
hensive view of his subject, and doing so with
an intense fervency, and a thrilling tone of a deep,

134 SAPHIR'S FIRST BOOK—' CONVERSION

spirit-stirring voice, which had a kind of magnetic
power, never to be forgotten by those who came
under its influence. He considered that the great
object of preaching ought to be the interpreting of
Scripture, the unfolding of it, in its relations to
other parts, and its application to practical life.
Few preachers of our own, or almost any other
age, have had as great a knowledge of Scripture.

The quietness of Shields, where there was not
a large congregation — though he considerably in-
creased it — gave him time to develop and regulate
his powers as an English preacher, and also leisure
to pursue his studies in general literature as well
as theology, both in German and English.

At Shields he had his admirers, but was com-
paratively unknown beyond. He wrote however
a book, when minister there — his first book —
entitled Conversion, which attracted the attention,
amonsf others, of the late Dr. James Hamilton
of London, who thus noticed it in the pages of
Evangelical Christendom: — -'With its deep in-
sight, its glowing tone of love and gladness, and
its abundance of thought, original, wise, and
beautiful, this is a riire book. Mr. Saphir is 'a
householder who bringeth forth out of his treasure
things new and old ' ; and while he secures our
confidence by his loyalty to the unchanging veri-
ties, he deserves our gratitude for many new and
happy illustrations. Nor do we know many books
where so much scholarship is brought to bear with
so little ostentation, nor many books adapted to

REVIEWED AND DESCRIBED. 185

SO wide a range of readers." This book contains
sketches of conversions, of both Old and New
Testament periods. It shows great insight into
character, and gives true portraits of the men as
well as vivid descriptions of the circumstances.
By many it is felt to be one of the most interest-
ing of his books, — written with youthful fervour.
It abounds in sentences in which great truths are
given in few words, and in a manner not to
be forgotten — as for instance : —

Stop here a moment, and ponder on these great
truths. Jesus is both Lamb and Lion, Saviour
and Judge, the Forgiver of sins and the Judge
of sinners. Now Satan tempts us to think that
Jesus is severe and awful to approach noiv, whereas
he makes us believe that in that great day Christ
will be merciful and indulgent. . . . Whereas the
truth is exactly the reverse. Noiv, Jesus is the
Lamb. Be not afraid of going to Him, however
guilty and sinful. He has not a harsh word for a
sinner comins; to Him now. His whole messao^e is
pardon and peace. What can be more gentle than
a lamb ? Even the youngest child will approach
fearlessly and confidently, and put its tiny arm
round the neck of the gentle lamb. Thus,
sinner, come boldly to Him who now is Jesus,
Saviour. But a day is coming when there shall
be revealed the wrath of the Lamb ; when the
Saviour will no longer say to His persecutors and
enemies, " I am Jesus " ; but shall manifest Himself
as the righteous Judge and King, and say to all

13G PASSAGES FROM ' CONVERSION:

who rejected and despised Him, "Depart from Me.''
'^ Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, and ye perish
from the way when His wrath is kindled but a
little." Blessed are all they that trust in Him !

The following passage on the Psalms expresses
much in a few words : —

Knowest thou the chief musician whom God
has given to His people ? that man after His
own heart, who knew life, with its bitterness
and joys, its trials and sorrows, its sunshine and
gloom, its mountain heights and dark valleys ?
Lovest thou the Psalms? "The Bible, in minia-
ture," Luther calls them ; where thou seest the very
heart-life of God's saints. In the night of afflic-
tion, in the storms of temptation, in the unquiet
of repentance, in the twilight of doubt, have you
found in them supplications, and sighs, and out-
pourings of heart that you could make your own ?
In the joy of fulfilled wishes, in the ecstasy of
gratitude and praise, in the overwhelming moments
when you were crowned with loving-kindness and
mercies of which you were not worthy, have you
found in them hallelujahs, songs of triumph and
adoration ? My fellow - Christians, I know you
have, for God has given this Book of Psalms to
be the companion of His people — and His Church
will use it and sing; it, till we learn that new sono-
in heaven. And out of that song-book did the
prisoners (Paul and Silas) doubtless sing.

These passages, and numberless others, clearly
indicate the power he possessed as a preacher, before^

DEATH OF HIS ONLY CHILD. 137

he was brought into prominent public notice. The
whole thought of the book is scriptural and pro-
found, yet clear, conveying the lesson intended
in the various narratives referred to tersely and
lucidly — with poetic power describing the scenes,
and yet never sacrificing the evangelical teaching
to pictorial efiect.

His ministry in Shields continued for five years,
and was undoubtedly of importance in God's
providence in preparing him for his future work.
Here also in Shields, he and his wife had a pre-
paration of another kind, under the chastening
hand of the Lord, in the very sad loss of the only
child they ever had, a little girl of about a year
and a half old, whom they had named Asra. This
Avas a terrible blow, which he could not think of in
after years without deepest pain, and which he often
recalled and dwelt upon, in times of depression.

38

CHAPTER XIV.

SETTLEMENT AT GREENWICH.

The Rev. George Duncan — The Congregation — Speedy Popu-
larity — The Church needs to be Enlarged — Letters to Mr.
Stevenson, M.P. and others as to his Work — Letters de-
scriptive of Saphir and his Ministry — Edward Irving — •
Campbell of Row —Sermon to Children — Letters to Lady
Kinloch — Joy in his Work — Spiritual Fruits.

AT last lie was to enter on his great mission.
His fame had reached London, not only
through Dr. James Hamilton's admiration of his
book, but also through Mr. Duncan, his predecessor
at Greenwich. The Kev. George Duncan, a man
beloved by all who knew him, son of the celebrated
Dr. Duncan of Euthwell, when about to retire from
his ministerial charge of St. Mark^s Presbyterian
Church, Greenwich, w^as anxious to find a successor
who, he hoped, might acquire great influence for
good. He had himself been in North Shields
before going to Greenwich, and having man}'
friends there, had naturally heard much about
Saphir and his spiritual teaching. He had also
heard him himself. He strongly recommended
him to his people, who were a comparatively
small body, and Saphir was unanimously called
to be their minister.

SPEEDY POPULARITY AT GREENWICH. 139

He went to Greenwich in 1861. The effect of
his ministry was instantaneous. The church, which
had been sparsely attended, soon became densely
filled, not only on the Sundays, but at the week-
night services. The people Hocked, even from the
popular evangelical ministry of Canon Miller, to
hear him, and there gathered round him people of
all churches, especially earnest-minded Christians.
There was so much spiritual life in his preaching,
and so much instruction based on thorough know-
ledge of Scripture, that Christian people felt both
quickened and edified, and many careless persons,
attracted at first by the crowds, were impressed
under his ministry.

The following letter from one who was early
attracted to his Greenwich ministry gives a vivid
idea of his power : —

''It is very difiicult to write recollections of
beloved Dr. Saphir which will be oi 'piiblic interest.
Through his wonderful ministry he has become, so
to speak, incorporated into one's being, and will
exercise a life-long power over those who really
knew and loved him. His words, his manner and
tone of voice, with the merry quick twinkle in his
eye, all return to the mental vision almost as though
we had just been enjoying them.

'• The first time I saw Dr. Saphir was in St.
Mark's Church, Greenwich. How well 1 remember
it, that ethereal-looking little man (minus gown
and bands), speaking without any note, and with
that peculiar sideway glance at his left hand which

UO SECRET OF SAPHIRS POWER.

made people think be had hieroglyphics written on
his finger-nails ! I remember feeling it was a
wonderful address, but somehow it seemed a long
way off, heaven-high above me.

" But we continued going, and soon his ministry
began to exercise that wonderful interest and
fascination which made ns think nothing of the
long exposed walk twice a Sunday in any wind
or weather, so only we might be present at the
feast to follow.

'' What was the secret of it ? a fine intellect ? a
splendid command of language ? a wide and com-
prehensive knowledge of Scripture ^ All these he
had, and they were blessed gifts of God ; but
the secret was, that Jesus was to him first and
foremost. He saw Jesus from Genesis to Reve-
lation, and this Jesus became transfigured (at least
to one of his hearers), no longer the abstract
mighty Being far away somewhere in heaven ; but
the living, loving, exalted, coming Son of man, yet
to be glorified and owned in this world, where He
is still despised, when all things, natural as well as
spiritual, shall own His sway, and praise His Name.
Ah ! it was wonderful what a new lioht dawned
through those burning words of his, and how God
owned him to be His servant, by the way in which
so frequently he answered the unspoken questions
of the heart, clearly and concisely, as though they
had been laid out in order before him, whereas he
knew nothing, but his Master knew, and gave His
servant the needed portion to distribute ; or some-

HIS GREENWICH MINISTRY. 141

times it was some trouble ahead, and even before
it reached us, the needed words of comfort and
strength had already been spoken, in readiness
by God's faithful messenger.

" The short opening prayers, specially on Sunday
mornings, have left a marked impression on my
mind. They only lasted two or three minutes,
and yet often I have felt, ' That is enough ; I can
go home now if need be ' — it was so truly entering
into the presence-chamber of the King. He loved
to repeat that we had come to meet with Jesus,
and claim the promise made to those gathered in
His Name ; we had come not because it was eleven
o'clock on Sunday morning or because it was the
Presbvterian Church, but to see Jesus.

'' The devil was a great reality to him. He used
to say, the preacher saw the place full of angels and
devils ; the praying Christians, the seeking souls
helped him ; all the rest dragged him.

" And then the Communion seasons — oh ! what
times of blessing they were I — when our hearts
burned within us, and the disciples as of old could
say, they were glad, for they had seen the Lord. He
would have liked the Communion every Sunday, the
resurrection-day of our Lord and Saviour Jesus
Christ ; our birthday, as he loved to call it ; but he
only succeeded in bringing the people to a monthly
instead of a quarterly Communion.

" Tn private intercourse his simplicity and child-
likeness were in marked contrast to the mighty
power displayed in the pulpit. If reference was

142 SAPIinrS KXTinafE SENSITIVENESS.

made to his sermons, he would speak of them as
though some other person had preached them.
' Yes, 1 like that ; that is a beautiful thought ; is
it not wonderful V and so on.

" When there was a collection for the Jewish
Society, that was a gala time with him ; he would
announce the collection before beginning to speak,
and then launch into his subject. AVe had good
measure on these occasions ; he would generally
speak for an hour or nearly so, ranging through the
Scriptures, unfolding to us God's plans and purposes
for His beloved chosen nation, proving that His
promises are true and faithful, and must lie fulfilled.

" He was so painfully sensitive that he became
greatly depressed, and after his thrilling a large
congregation, on going into the vestry you would
find him down in the depths ; some little trifle
^^'ould make him feel that his work was of little
use. He would shrink up like a snail into his shell
in a shy sort of way. Did he see a little group
of people in the aisle after the sermon, ' Oh, there
are a good many people, I will go round the other
way ; ' while the said people were lingering in the
hope of a passing word and a shake of the hand.
T often thought he deprived himself of some of the
cheer he might have had.

" He was not only sensitive, but sympathetic.
Often there comes to my mind an expression used
by him in prayer, ' It may be we are too weak to
pray, then we put our hand into the h.and of Jesus,
and say, " Pray with me." ' "

llh^ POWERFUL PREACHING, 143

Another member of the Greenwich congregation
writes of him : —

'' Most truly his life was most valuable, and
much more widely and richly blessed of God
than any outward manifestation ever showed. . . .
Sitting under his ministry just made one instinct-
ively feel that secret communion with God w^as
the atmosphere he breathed. His preaching was
no mere delivery of a sermon outside as it were
of himself, but a pouring forth of the God-given
wisdom, with the whole man so engrossed thereby,
that while in the pulpit seeming, as one said to
me one day, ' strong as a lion ' — afterwards there
was complete exhaustion.

'*0f a highly-strung, keenly-sensitive nature — as
a medical man wdio knew him only through attend-
ino' him durino- a severe illness abroad, said to me
afterwards, ' His mind is too bio for that little
body,' — while the simplicity of a child mingled
with his profound spiritual experience. The chief
beauty of his ministry w\as, that while too deep
to be fully appreciated by the shallow-minded
Christian, it was so clear and simple that I have
seen the poor in this w^orld, illiterate as regards
earthly wisdom, but taught of God, drink in the
message, and echo out a glad Amen ; while by
MSS. and printed books many gained rich blessings
wdio had never seen his face. . . .

'* I owe much to him. May your ' work' be ' an
inscription of praise unto the King of Israel, who,
from among His chosen people, raised up one, and

144 LETTERS TO MR. STEVENSON, M.P.

SO filled and gifted him by the Holy Ghost, to
gather in and build up His people in their most
holy faith ! ' . . . As of Apollos, one might truly
say of him, ' mighty in the Scriptures/ for as a
Jew he had a most marvellous grasp of the whole
Word of God."

In the following letters to Mr. J. Cochrane
Stevenson, M.P., with whom he had been so
intimately and pleasantly associated at South
Shields, he gives a cheerful view of his work.

Tn a letter dated Feb. 4, 1863, he says :—

" I send by this post a circular about the enlargement of
our church. I had many difficulties within and without,
but all has ended well, and the present plan has been adopted
quite cordially and unanimously. We have been much
encouraged in our work, and my most sanguine expectations
have been surpassed. I am anxious to have the spire com-
pleted, and above all, to open the church free of debt. Next
Sabbath we are to add seven office-bearers : three elders, viz.
General Shortrede, Mr. L. Mackay, and Mr. Basden. Among
the deacons are Mr. Fraser (Dr. Hamilton's brother-in-law),
and Mr. Strahan the publisher. Our congregation is certainly
a very mixed one : Episcopalians, Baptists, Independents,
and a very few Plymouthists ; but they are beginning to
coalesce, and we have every reason to be hopeful. I am
just expecting Mr. J. E. Mathieson and Carstairs Douglas.^
Douglas is to hold a meeting to-night in our church. We
are expecting McLeod and Stevenson on Monday. There is
to be a breakfast at Strahan's in the morning, and a dinner
at the ' Trafalgar ' in the evening for Good Words folk :
Hughes ('Tom Brown'), Ludlow, Trollope, &c. I was to
be among the small fry, but I have to be at a Jubilee
meeting in Blackheath. McLeod and Stevenson are ffoino^

1 The well-known missionary to China of the Presbyterian
Church of England.

ON CHURCH PliOGEESS AT CREENWICH. 145

to Germany to import deaconesses to Glasgow ! Did you
notice in jSTovember Good Words an article, 'Words of Life
from a Roman Catholic Pulpit ' 1 If not, I think you will
be interested in it. I intend writing a second article on the
same priest. As I am advertising myself, I may also add
that I wrote ' The Land of Chain,' and that I translated
the poem on the Noah's Ark in the article on ' Toys.' "

In another letter to Mr. Stevenson he says : —

'• I should have acknowledged your letter, and thanked
you for your kind contribution before this, but I had no
end of meetings and engagements the last week. ... I
quite sympathize with you in your feeling about the traditions
of men. But, I suppose, that while we retain our liberty
in our own conscience and mind, we have to bear the infirmity
of the weak brethren. I am convinced however that our
Church, as a whole, is paralyzed by the prevailing legal
spirit. Those who enjoy the gospel of Jesus Christ, and
have a clear need of the truth, will as a rule be large-
minded ; and my impression is, that if our ministers and
elders were more evangelical, and more delivered from the
spirit of bondage, our churches would in a very short time
present a totally new appearance.

" ^Ye are going on well, thank God, in our church. The
building, to speak of the external first, turned out better
than w^e expected : good air, easy speaking, plenty of light,
and the aesthetics gratified. The expenses turned out heavier
than expected, £3800; we are still £2000 in debt. The
congregation is large, and I have much reason to praise the
Lord. We have 300 communicants, and a considerable
number of very earnest spiritual people. We are going to
introduce the Synod's Hymn-book the first Sunday in March.
I would have greatly preferred the collection of Mr. W. F.
Stevenson, but yielded to the caution of two old elders, who
of course opposed hymns in general. They are quite old-
school on every point, and sore about all the innovations,
and the complete change and enlargement that has taken
place. They did not want any enlargement, being satisfied

14G URGES FREQUENT COMMUNION.

with what I called a very limited ' Caledonian Club. JS'o
English admitted.' But the Scotch people did not come
till the English set them the example. This also is a contest
between gospel and law-gospel : Sara and Hagar. But I
do think they have got more light and liberty. . . . The
English Christians, as a rule, have clearer views ; and the
chief reason, I am firmly convinced, why we Presbyterians
do not make more progress in England, is simply our want
of the true gospel spirit. It sounds harsh, but T could prove
it to demonstration.

" AVe have the communion once in every two months.
7\fter the struggle I laid down from the pulpit the principle
that like the Apostles we ought to have it everij Sunday.
For those who like authority for truth, and to whom truth
is not authority, I quote Calvin and John Owen. In
Spurgeon's church they have the communion every Sunday.
But once a month is quite common both in the Church of
England and among Dissenters. What right have we to
keep people, who enjoy the Lord's Supper as they do prayer,
itc, waiting for two months, and in case of sickness, &c.,
four to six % Special prayer-meetings and other self -invented
extra services are multiplied, but Christ's own institution
never enters their minds as a means of revival. My peo^y^
are almost all in favour of the weekly Communion ; in fact,
nothing but the gospel binds these heterogeneous elements
of Baptists, Independents, Episcopalians, ifec, together, and
I should be very sorry to make Old School Presbyterians
of them. But enough of Church affairs. I must only add,
that we have a beautiful spire, and tliat the neighbourhood
feels much gratified by the edifice.

" My father has been very ill, and is dying. He sufPers
much. He very rarely speaks, but often quotes Inrgely
from the Scriptures in Hebrew and English. Mr. Konig,
the missionary, gives me a very satisfactory account of his
state of mind. His hope rests on the truth set forth in
Isaiah liii. It is a very great trial to me to be so far away,"

The following extracts are from letters written
dnrino- liis Greenwich ministry to one of his

LRTTKUH TO LADY KIXLOCH. 1 ^7

most devoted friends — Lady Kinloch — a very dear
friend to the close of his life. He writes on
October 2, 1862 :—

"The Exhibition brought us such a crowd of visitors,
which is very pleasant, but breaks sadly on one's time.
Nothing is doing about the church, and I have given up
thinking about it, but mean to wait quietly till something
more definite occurs." (This refers to the enlarging of the
church, which had now become absolutely necessary.) "How
easy it is to approve of humility, and how difficult to be
thankful for trials and crossings of will !

" To trust in Jesus only, and seek His approbation only,
is a very hard thing, although it ought to be the very
easiest and sweetest thing of all. This strikes me most in
the life of Christ, that the Father was all in all to Him,
how that man's help or praise could not affect Him, and
yet what true meekness and considerateness towards men !

" This leads me to your remarks on dear Irving. He was
a great theologian, and felt that the Humanity of Christ
was a topic sadly neglected. He had greater ideas, and in
more abundant number, than he was able to master and
arrange, and he fell naturally into many crudities and con-
tradictions. But what a true, loving, Christ-like man and
minister he must have been, when even the dry scholastics
could not help loving him, and acknowledging in him the
power of Christ ! Many of his expressions on the humanity
of Christ I think most unwarranted and unnecessary even
for his own purpose. There was no sinful tendency even
in the flesh of Christ; He could be tried, and Satan wanted,
but in vain, to make this trial a temptation. Yet Jesus
suffered in all this ; it was a real and fearful conflict.

"To my mind we hear not enough about God in Christ.
There is something Unitarian in even our orthodox teaching.
The sum and substance of truth and consolation to my mind
is, that Jesus Christ is the true God, and Eternal Life (1 John

148 THE GOD-MAN.

V. 20). How dim are all our ideas of God, until we realize
a Man, with the print of the nails in His hands, on the
heavenly throne ; and how distant is God from our daily
life till we see Him living on earth as Jesus ! I met a very
striking expression, the other day, in a German Prayer-book :
' Jesu, lass mir deinen ganzen Wandel auf Erden vor Augen
stehen, dass ich mich immer darin erneuere,' which may be
paraphrased : The toute ensemble, or, as the Germans say,
Gesammteindruck of the Life of Jesus to be constantly in
us, and before us. We would certainly have less discussions
of words or forms of doctrine, were our thoughts more centred
on Christ personally, on pleasing and enjoying Him. While
I write this, I feel most painfully the very lack of what I
approve. What a wonderful gift is prayer ! — but I must
confess that I have not received it as I see it in Scripture
and the lives of many Christians. It is a very great con-
solation to me to think of friends who pray for me. A
minister now-a-days is viewed too little as an individual, and
too much as invested with an office. When you remember
me in your prayer, will you pray that God may give me
sincerity, and faith, and a hatred of sin, and love to Himself,
and to the souls of men ?

"I have been thinking much lately of children, and par-
ticularly the children of Christians. Jesus taking up little
children and blessing them, is a great and significant fact.
It requires great wisdom to be both zealous and patient, to
sow the good seed, and yet not to force growth. But I
suppose love is a good guide. May you have the joy of
seeing all your children' in Christ's fold, and all that are
dear to you ! . . .

" Campbell of Row is, I believe, a very earnest Christian.
His theory, I think, is not scriptural. He maintains that
all are pardoned, and their future destiny depends on their
accepting or rejecting the pardon. Did you notice a paper
in Blackioood — a sermon ? The writer groans for a liturgy.
I am reading Macleod's Old Lieutenant. It is beautiful, and
I think will be very useful to sailors. It is by no means
Calvinistic, but this is more implied ; on the whole it is very
good, and truly Christian,"

THE LOVE OE GOD. U9

In another letter to the same lady, he says : —

" Loving-kindness and tender mercies form the crown which
in this present life the Father gives us. Psalm ciii. seems
to me the most perfect expression of a Christian's heart,
praising and trusting God, the Eedeemer ; remembering sins
and weaknesses, and yet rejoicing in a merciful and com-
passionate Father."

In a letter written at the beginning of a new year,
1865, he says : —

" I hope that this year will bring you much blessing and
sunshine. May you see daily more of the love of God, and
of Christ the gift of His love ! Whenever I want to get
into a region of light and peace, and out of the mists of
gloom that so often arise, I think of the love the Father
has to Christ, as our Eedeemer and High Priest, and try to
realize that it is the same love He has to us. We could
scarcely believe it were we not assured of it so expressly
in the Word of God ; but once having seen and believed it,
we cannot rest in anything short of this, 'accepted in the
beloved ! ' You will enjoy, I think, John's description of
Christian experience. How uniform it is in its main features,
and how completely John the Baptist expresses it when he
says, ' Christ must increase, but he himself decrease ! ' And
yet this is growing and enjoying life abundantly.

" I trust you are feeling independent of everything in the
spiritual life, except the Lord and His Word. The Father
and the Son have promised to come to us, and make their
abode with us. We need not go any distance to any well,
but have the water of life in our souls. I think of most of
the personal witnesses, as Paul, John, David, Luther, and try
to see the grace of God in them, and the glory of God in
their infirmities as well as their strength. I try to think
of Paul as a man, fighting with sin, unbelief, gloom, and
the whole old man, and seeing no other righteousness and
life but Christ.

''The common way of hero worship, and gazing at mere

150 SKETCH OF SAPHIR'S WORK.

meu as stars, is utterly false and unpractical; it does not
glorify God in them, and it does not help us. But when
we see God's grace in them, they are so full of encouragement
and comfort, for they point us plainly to Christ. May we
have such peace and joy in believing, in learning Christ, and
may our constant desire be to know Him I

" I send you the Congregational Report for this year, from
which you will see that God has been with us. I am looking
forward hopefully to the future. I have been very anxious
to have thiugs placed on a true and Scriptural basis, and
God has helped me wonderfully. The Christians in the
congregation are, T think, growing in knowledge and love,
and the others are beginning to feel that there is a reality
in the truth and life of Christ. I have been explaining on
the Sunday mornings the Tabernacle, and in the evenings
the Gospel of Johu. I love both subjects dearly, and I am
thankful that the preaching of the gospel is new to me every
Lord's Day. Many friends must be praying for me. Some
of our people have fixed Saturday evening from eight to
nine for special prayer. It is a great help to me, and endears
them very much to my heart. We have a colporteur among
the Jews in Pesth, who has much intercourse with Jews
specially from the country."

In a letter written ii] the following year, 1866,
lie gives a bright sketch of his work : —

" I have had so many meetings lately, that I feel my
brain quite exhausted, if ever there was anything in it.
But it is so difficult to keep quiet in this place. I am much
encouraged however in my work. I have a class for children
every Wednesday afternoon. I hold it in the church, as
about 350 little folk attend, and some grown-up jjeople
besides. The children seem to enjoy it ver}^ much, and look
very bright. I tell them the contents of a chapter (I am
going through Genesis), explaining and illustrating it, and
asking them questions. They are very lively, and answer
well. It is my pet just now ; I find the children have less
difficulty in understanding the truth than the grown-up
people.

Ills BIBLE READINGS. 151

" We have now a missionary in our district. He was
recotnmended by Horatius Bonar, and he is a very enlightened
and wise man. Our boys' evening classes are attended by
sixty roughs, and the ^Sunday evening service in the school-
room by about eighty to a hundred people. Our Young
Men's Association too is promising well. This week they
have a Conversational Meeting on the Second Advent, which
I conduct. This evening our London Association have their
annual meeting. They ai-e doing much for the poor in our
district, and we have made good progress, as far as work is
concerned. Oh, for more of God's Light and Love ! — the
time seems so short and the work so great. There is little
spiritual interest among the people of this neighbourhood.
Among the believers there is much life ; last year has been
a very blessed one, also in bringing in souls through the
preaching of the gospel.

"I have been led lately to dwell much on the gospel as
good news to man, coming to him wherever he is, and bringing
salvation with it — just as the good Samaritan came alone
to the sick man and lifted him up. I fear I have not suffi-
ciently brought out in my preaching that it is 'good news,'
a, joyous sound. The open arms of the Father ought to be
continually pointed out, and the Door open, explained. For
many people imagine that they have not got the religious
temperament, &c., and that they are different from believers
whom they admire and approve. We cannot speak to them
too affectionately, and also in too great a variety of ways.

"I am giving a course of lectures on the study of the
Bible. I am anxious to show how necessary and practicable
it is to read the ichoh Bible. I believe my people would like
to do so, but feel despondent, as to managing it. The state
of the church is very much to be attributed to not reading
Scriptui-e, more copiously and connectedly. I intend next
year, if it please God, to have on Wednesday evenings,
instead of a lecture, simply Bible readings, taking eight or
ten chapters, and adding a few remarks as to their scope,
coriuection, and only explaining what is absolutely necessary.
I hope thus to get through a very large portion of Scriptui-e
in the year.*'

152 JOY IN HIS WORK.

These letters give glimpses into his inner and
outer life — showing his joy in his ministry — his
genuine humility and sensitiveness, and his fertility
of resources in the carrying on of his work.

Of this time, the Eev. J. Basden, Congregational
minister of Dedham, Essex, writes : —

"My father, Mr. E. W. A. Basden, was an elder
of St. Mark's, Greenwich, when Dr. Saphir was
the minister there, and I, as a boy, regarded no
school grief unendurable, considering I should hear
Saphir on Sunday. ... To Dr. Saphir I owe
the deepest and greatest spiritual influence of my
life, and have no ambition other than to preach
Christ and the Scriptures, as he expounded them to
me. As to my father, the Bible and ' Saphir ' arc
his two books."

These early years at Greenwich were, we believe,
among the happiest years of his life. Afterwards,
his health, which had never been robust, began to
fail, and he scarcely ever again enjoyed the same
physical strength and vigour.

153

CHAPTER XV.

LITERARY ACTIVITY.

His Literary Tastes and Power — Wide Knowledge of Liter-
ature, German and English — Contributes to Good Words —
Notes of Various Contributions and Extracts — Tour in
Germany with the Macleods aud Stevenson — His Tracts
— The Golden A B G of the Jews^ &c.

IN 1860, the magazine Good Woixls, under the
editorship of the well-known Dr. Norman
Macleod, had suddenly obtained a marvellous
popularity. Dr. Macleod, who had long known
Saphir, and, as we have noted, befriended him in
Glasgow, asked him to write for his journal. The
publishers of Good Words were also members of
his congregation.

He became a frequent contributor. His first
article was written early in 1861, just about the
time of his going to Greenwich. It was entitled
' The Light of the World.' Life, Love, and Light
are inseparably connected. Speaking of the testi-
mony of John the Apostle to Jesus, as the Light
of the World, he says : —

'' Who knew Him best when He was on earth ?

154 THE 'LIGHT OF THE WORLD:

Who was His most beloved friend, His most
favoured disciple, the nearest and dearest to His
heart? The Apostle John. Is it not a significant
fact, that the mnn who was most intimately
acquainted with Christ's humanity, gives the clearest
and most em[)hatic testimony concerning His
divinity, — that John, who leaned on His bosom,
who had the deepest insight into the life, thoughts,
and feelings, who enjoyed the largest share of the
confidence and affection of the Man Christ Jesus,
never loses sight for a moment, in all his writings,
of the Godhead of the Saviour. The more w^e
examine His history, the more are we convinced
that He has the words of eternal life, that He
is that Anointed One, the Son of the living God."
Speaking of Jesus Christ as the Light of the
World, he proceeds : — "Former revelations of God
were like flashes of lightning, like passing visitant
rays, like the reflected light of the moon ; here is
the sun in mid-day splendour, and yet its bright-
ness is full of healing, so that men can endure it.
We see God, and yet we do not die, but live. . . .
Christ reveals God in His words and in His w^orks.
In Him as the Light, everything is simple, un-
divided, and perfectly harmonious. His words
and works are but a manifestation of His person.
When He taught, and performed His works. He
never for a moment interrupted His fellowship
with the Father: as the sun giving light to the
lowliest flow^er in the valley, leaves not his ap-
pointed path on high, and as a sunbeam passes

A CONTRIBUTION TO 'GOOD WORDS.' 155

undefiled through the vilest pollution, Jesus, while
teaching, healing, working, even when surrounded
by the guiltiest and most God-estranged, was
always in heaven."

He shows that Jesus is the Light of the World
as to His teaching. His teaching is intelligible
to all — to Nicodemus as well as the woman of
Samaria and the fishermen of Galilee ; to use the
words of Celsus, '•' to woollen manufacturers, shoe-
makers and curriers, the most uneducated and
boorish of men, as well as to the great and learned."

After showing that He also is the Light of the
World in the perfection of His character, he con-
siders the various qualities of light, as self-commu-
nicative, free, seen by itself, calm yet strong, joyful,
and he applies these characteristics of Light with
telling power to Christ.

Some of Saphir's smaller contributions to Good
Woi'ds were especially for children. Li the letters
we have given he speaks of his largely attended
children's services, and the following ' Parables,'
which appeared in 1861, enable us to understand
the secret of his success in this interesting sphere
of his ministry.

I. — THE KEY AND THE PRISONERS.

" There was once a kino- whose sons, owino' to
their folly, lost their liberty, and lingered in prison
in a foreign land. Their fother's heart could not
know them to be in such need without determining

156 ' THE KEY AND THE PRISONERS:

to deliver them. He rose up and went into the
far land, and after he had bound the jailer hand
and foot, he threw the key through the grating
and said : ' Dear children, open the door and return
home with me. I will pardon all, and forgive your
folly and disobedience.' But it was a cold winter's
morning, and the snow was falling. The sons sat
down, looked at the key, and talked of its size,
its form, and of the skill of the locksmith's craft.
Some praised a state of freedom as the noblest,
and certainly the most indispensable gift. They
talked of the joy and pleasantness of the father's
house. Then the father cried : ' The key is to
open the dooi% you have no time to lose.' But
they remained there looking at the key, and talking
about it ; and some of them, putting on a very
wise face, supposed it could not possibly fit ;
it must be too small, and something must be filed
off the wards on one side, and something must be
added on the other. It was done ; but behold the
key would no longer fit ! But they cried : ' Now
indeed we have made a real genuine fine key !
How we have perfected it ! Truly we are even more
skilful than the original locksmith ! What would
his work have been without our improvement ! '
But the key would not fit, and the gate remained
shut. Then the father spoke, and tears filled his
eyes : * You don't wish to return ! You love me not,
and would rather remain in prison than obey me I '
They answered : ^ Nothing is nobler, nothing more
beautiful, nothing worthier of men, nothing is

CONTRIBUTIONS TO 'GOOD WORDS.' 157

higher and holier than childlike love and reverence.'
Then replied the father, earnestly and mournfully :
' If you had truly loved me, you would long since
have opened the door.'

" But some of them mocked and laughed, and
said : * The key is indeed no key at all ; and why
should we need one ? It is very pleasant here, and
w^e are quite happy. Besides, true freedom is not
to be found at home with our father. Are we not
already free ? ' "

" II. — THE ARTIST OR THE FATHER.

" I came into a hall, and saw in it beautiful
paintings and noble sculptures, arranged in a
tasteful and suggestive manner. And I said to
myself : ' The hand of our artist has been at work
here. How beautiful are the w^orks of his brush and
chisel ! — and how beautifully and thoughtfully has
he grouped them together ! ' And I thought on the
subjects he had chosen, and considered the details
of execution, and I began to make a picture in
my mind of the artist's character, disposition, and
cast of thous^ht.

" And I came into a small room, and saw a man
with his wife and children sitting round a table.
And I heard a little boy stammering, ' Father/ and
clinging to the man's breast, and the wife called
him by his name, and he was the joy and the sun
of their heart.

"And I thought : ' What will it help me to know
God only as an artist, as Him who made mountains,

158 'THE CATHEDRAL AND THE MOUSE:

and the sea, fields, aod meadows, if I do not know
Him as my Father, as my Husband, as Him who
protects, liberates, guides, comforts me, as the sun
of my heart and my portion for ever ? '

" And I thought that for this reason Christ came,
that we should no longer yearn after an unknown
God, but pray to and live with our Father."

" III. — THE CATHEDRAL AND THE MOUSE.

" In the quiet twilight I stept into a great and
glorious cathedral ; and I looked at the wonderful
pillars, striving upwards to heaven, and my soul
was lifted up to God. And I heard a rustling and
nibbling noise, and saw a mouse running anxiously
and greedily after some crumbs, that it might eat
them. It sees not the beauty of the house in which
it lives, it knows not to whose honour it is built,
it has no eye for the bold structure of its roof.

*' And thou, man, be not such a grey, hungry,
greedy mouse in the grand cathedral of this world
in which thou livest, and which proclaims the
glory of God."

One of his addresses to children was based on
the words entitled, The Four Little Preachers.
"* There be four things which are little upon the
earth, but they are exceeding wise. The ants are
a people not strong, yet they prepare their meat in
the summer ; the conies are but a feeble folk, yet
make they their houses in the rocks ; the locusts
have no king, yet go they forth all of them by

'THE FOUR LITTLE PREACHERS: 159

bands ; the spicier taketh hold with her hands,
and is in kings' palaces ' " — and the following out-
line shows the lessons he drew from them : — " The
ants taught to do in summer what cannot be
done in winter, to be diligent in youth, and to
prepare for the coming winter. How are we to
labour for the meat which endureth for ever ?
Jesus tells us. Just as the people sitting on the
grass had nothing to do but to take the bread and
eat it, so if our hearts hunger and thirst after God's
forgiveness and love, we have nothing to do but to
trust in Jesus. Jesus is the bread of life. But if
Jesus is the bread of life, He will show us how to
prepare our meat in summer, that is, while our
earthly life lasts ; and then we shall enjoy in tlie life
to come what we have laid up, not in winter, for
that life will be much sunnier and brighter than
any earthly summer.

" AVhat does the coney teach us ? We also
require a house, in which we can dwell safely
here and hereafter. This house must be built
on a rock, where the conies make their houses.
They are safe, not because they are strong, but
because the rock is strong." This he applied to
building on Christ. Then as to the locusts. What
did they accomplish by numbers and unity ? And
as to the spider, what did his perseverance do ?
He never rested till he got his web firmly placed,
and nothing could daunt him, and from no place,
even the palace of the king, could he be excluded.
Here he impressed the duty of perseverance, in

160 THE STORY OF ' NANNERL'

prayer, in forgiveness, in love, and then the great
reward that awaits all who rest not till they enter
the Kingdom.

He also wrote the following short tale, which
appeared in the same journal in 1862 : —

HER MAJESTY, NANNERL, THE WASHERWOMAN.

In a little village on the banks of the Neckar,
in South Germany, lived Hans Kitter, master
tailor, with his wife Else. He was not wealthy,
but free from oppressive care ; he v/orked from
early morning till late at night, lived frugally,
sent his children to school, and had always a
dollar at Christmas to buy some toys, and to erect
a Christmas tree for the little ones. On Sundays
he put on his confirmation coat, the identical coat
in which he had been confirmed, and his beaver
hat. Else wore the cap with the yellow trimming,
the handkerchief with the blue border, and carried
her gilt hymn-book. But who in all the village
looked so devout and happy as Nannerl, their
eldest daughter ? She was about fourteen years
old, and very tall for her age. She wore always a
white gown on Sundays ; and her blue neckerchief,
a gift from old grandmamma, looked quite new,
althoui^h it was nearlv as old as herself. But what
could look old or grow shabby that was worn by
her, and folded up by her, and locked up by her ?
Look at her walking slowly and cheerfully to

CONTRIBUTED TO ' CWOD WORDS: 161

church with the younger chiklrcD, who cling to
her fondly, and if you do not bless her in your
heart, I am afraid you forgot your prayers this
morning.

Nanneri was a good girl, fond of nice dress
and of a village dance, it is true, and I do not wish
to deny it. The youths in the village liked her
much ; Conrad Hogel, old Heinrich the carpenter's
son, more than any one. Conrad was a very
handsome and kind-hearted youth ; he sang very
well, and as to steadiness and diligence, none could
excel him.

Conrad fell in love with Nanneri, and Nanneri
fell in love with Conrad, I don't know when and
how ; for I know it only from Nanneri herself,
and this is her account : '' Conrad often came to
my father's in the evening after work was over,
and we all walked out together into the wood, and
on Sunday afternoons to the garden. He had such
an honest face, and was so cheerful and merry, and
had such fine songs, that nobody could help liking
him. I was very happy when Conrad was with
us, and from my childhood never imagined that I
could live without him ; and after my confirmation,
one evening I went into our little front garden to
get some gooseberries for grandmamma, who was
very old, and lived with us. I went out ; it was on
a Thursday evening, and there Conrad was behind
me. I said, 'Good-evening, Conrad.' He said
nothing. So I did not mind him, but went to the
gooseberries. But he came after me, and told me

162 THE STORY OF ' NANNERL'

that he was to be made master carpenter next
week, and go into a new house next term. I said,
' I am very glad.' He asked me, ' Are you really ? '
I answered, ' Yes indeed.' Upon this, he fell on my
neck, and kissed me, and said, ' Nannerl, you must
come and be my little wife in the new house.' So
Conrad went to speak to my father, and he said :
' When I married Else I was a poor man, and had
nothing but my trade. You are an honest
Christian and workman, and if Nannerl loves you,
I give you my blessing.' This was on Thursday
night, a fortnight before grandmamma died."

And so Nannerl married Conrad, and they
lived together happily for some years. They had
sufficient to support themselves, although some
trouble and care occasionally to get money for
wood and winter clothes; but they got through,
and had health, good summer weather, fine walks
in the fields, beautiful flowers, mountains and
glens, ice-skating in winter, gratis; and this is
frequently one of the differences between poor and
rich people ; the poor are not too proud, and enjoy
these gratis things — health, water, walks, &c.

Quiet little village ! — quiet peaceful family ! —
no change, no event ! Conrad's mother dies, and
Nannerl goes next spring to look at the flowers on
her grave. Nannerl has a son, and all the Ritters
and Hogels are at the christening ; and Nannerl,
in the white dress, is as beautiful as ever. There
is great happiness in the little room, in the centre
of which is a very large fine cake, so suggestive

CONTRIBUTED TO 'GOOD WORDS.' 163

that every one lias some remark to make, and
something to jDraise. Quietly they live on, no
event, no change ! — till one day the cry is heard,
" War ! war ! Napoleon ! " Poor Conrad becomes
a soldier. Nannerl's tears flow fast. Little Carl,
dear tiny baby, plays with papa's czako, and is
delighted with it. " Was blasen die Trompeten ?
Hussaren heraiis ! "

There is old Hans, with a serious face, giving
advice to his son-in-law ; there is Else trying to
comfort her daughter, but weeping herself ; there is
Conrad's sister in a corner, packing his little knap-
sack silently ; there is Nannerl beseeching him to
stay. But the drum, the drum, it calleth so loud !

Thou art right, Conrad, and a true-hearted
German. Not pou7^ la gloire goest thou out to
fight. No, much-to-be-respected master carpenter,
it never entered thy head ; but as thou thyself
sayest : '' This land is German land, and the king's ;
this is God's right, and so we will show to all who
want to take it from us."

Conrad returned in two years, but not as he
went. He had lost a leg, had received several
wounds, and was so enfeebled that he could not
resume his work. He found his Nannerl looking
pale, and not in the white gown, but in black.
Hans and Else are both dead.

"Conrad," says Nannerl, "I have suffered so
much since you have been away. I dreamt almost
every night you were dead. Then my father
became ill and died, and, a month after, mother

164 THE STORY OF ' NANNERL'

Else followed liim. Conrad, they spoke of you,
and prayed for you. Mother died so calmly ! I was
putting her pillows right. She looked so pale, and
her eyes so dim ! She put up her hands to her
forehead — she had such pain there ! — and said,
' Not so tight ; they are putting on a golden
crown, as Pastor said they would ; but not so
tight ! ' She said also the * Our Father ' twice,
and asked for you."

Nannerl had been always dear and kind, yet
Conrad thought her never so kind and dear as now.
So calm, and cheerful, and busy, she did everything
for everybody ; no one could help loving and
honouring her. But Nannerl with the children
was the loveliest sight — how she taught them
hymns, and told them stories, when the girls were
knitting and the boys working ! Nannerl, what
change has come over you ? Never in low spirits
as before, no murmuring and fretting ; but so
loving, calm, and active. Nannerl had begun to
think of the crown, of which mother Els^ had
spoken. She had begun to think of love — her love
to Conrad, and where she would meet him in case
he died. On the God's acre grow lovely flowers ;
from the thought of death spring life-giving long-
ings. Then the old hymns and gospel verses of
her childhood awoke in Nannerl's heart. The Lord
Jesus, who had stood so close to her all her life,
stood now before her. She saw Him, and fell
down, and cried, '' Master ! "

Conrad had got a small pension from Govern-

CONTRIBUTED TO ' GOOD WORDS: IfjS

ment, and, as lie could not continue his trade in
the village, he went to the nearest town, where his
boys were received into a Government school, till
they were of age to learn some business. Nannerl
became a laundress, and earned as much as, with
Conrad's pension, sufficed for their support. Early
in the morning Nannerl began her work. At first
Conrad looked pained to see her undergoing such
exertions.

" When I saw you in the garden, Nannerl — "

" On the Thursday evening, wasn't it ? "

"You little thought— I little thouo-ht— " But
his voice failed him.

Nannerl smiled and said: '*The less we think
the better ; the blessed God thinks it all for us."
And so she comforted and cheered him. They
were happy in their gratis joys, good conscience,
and children's prattle. Conrad was not able to
walk much, but now and then they walked to-
gether. Nannerl was his support and stay.

'' Nannerl," said he, one evening, '' you are an
angel. How can you be so happy with such hard
work ? "

"Don't speak in this way. Look how healthy
our children are, and what a fine bold hand Carl
writes ! — he is already at the letter M ; and little
Nannette is going to knit something for your
birthday, but I should not tell you ; and you are
with me, and God is so kind to us."

" Nannerl, God be kind to you and my children.
Teach them your faith."

166 THE STORY OF 'NANNERL'

'' ' Our faith,' say, Conrad. Are not you also a
Christian ? You should think oftener of Him who
came to save us, and of the Heaven he brought us."

But the drum, the drum, it sounds so loud.
Neither Nannerl's cries nor the children's voices
can be heard, for the drum, the drum, it sounds so
loud !

Not unto the battle-field, but the grave.

Conrad is dying. He never loved Nannerl so
much as on his death- bed. He had never thought
so often of Him who brought new life and peace to
his wife's heart. "Nannerl," he said, "I have been
thinkinsf of the crown of thorns. That crown
brought Els^ a golden crown, and I also will be
crowned. God bless you and our children. Teach
them our ftiith."

Conrad is dead. Nannerl weeps, but she can
rejoice. *' God bless you and our children ! " She
heard these w^ords continually ; when she awoke at
nio^ht, when she arose in the mornincf, when the
Sunday bells rang, when she watched at their
bedsides. And God did bless her and her children.
She was so punctual, diligent, and skilful in her
work, that she never lacked employment. Her
sweet disposition and kindliness gained her many
friends, and not a few were drawn to her by a
deeper sympathy, and recognized in her a fellow-
pilgrim on the thorny path to the crovvn of glory.
Her boys grew up in the fear and love of God ;
filling the evening of her life with peace and
serenity.

CONTRIBUTED TO 'GOOD WORDS.' 16:

When I think of her, the grace and dignity of
her manner, her sweetness and gentleness to her
children, the words of wisdom and love that came
from her lips, her industry and unclouded cheerful-
ness, — "Nannerl, I think you wear the crown
already. Naunerl, I think you are one of the
greatest, noblest, human beings I ever saw.
Nannerl, God dwells in your heart, God delights in
you."

I say. Her Majesty Nannerl the washerwoman !
Of such queens consists heaven.

In an article on 'The Childhood of Jesus,' in
the same journal, the scenes were realized, as they
could scarcely be by one not of the Jewish race.
The home and development of the child Jesus is
very real, and the scene at the Temple in Jerusalem
is vividly described. His picture of Mary is most
life-like : —

Mary was a true daughter of Abraham. For
if Abraham is an eminent type of the character,
power, and victory of faith, in that he believed and
hoped against hope, clinging with childlike trust
and humility to the Word of the Most High, it is
in vain we seek for a more glorious manifestation
of Abraham's faith than is present to us in the
reply which Mary gave to the angelic messenger :
*' Behold the handmaid of the Lord : be it unto me
according to thy word." She is a true daughter of
David. She possessed the royal spirit of adoration

168 'THE CHILDHOOD OF JESUS.'

and joyous praise ; and when we hear her hymn,
''.My soul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit
hath rejoiced in God my Saviour," is it not as if
all the grand and beautiful chords of David's harp
were blended together in still sublimer harmony ?
— as if all the Psalms were concentrated in one
majestic and glorious Psalm of psalms ? Mary, a
true daughter of Abraham and David, is the type
of the poor in spirit, the meek and lowly, who are
rich and strong in God. In Joseph, Scripture
teaches us to see the just man delighting himself
in the law of God, a man perfect and upright, one
that feared God and eschewed evil, an Israelite
indeed, in whom there is no guile. May we not
say that Joseph represented the Old Testament in
its legal, Mary in its prophetic, aspect ?

Of the influence of the natural surroundings of
the home in Nazareth, he says : —

Jesus, with the eye of love and heavenly purity,
read in the book of Nature, and looked on men and
thino^s around Him. He considered the lilies of
the field, and the fowls of the air ; He watched the
clouds of heaven, and the red sky of the evening ;
He saw the sower going forth to sow, and the
shepherd leading his flock; He beheld the bride-
groom in his joy, and the widow in her sorrow ; He
knew the playful mirth of children, and the deal-
ings of men with their fellows ; He saw nature and
life, and in all things emblems of spiritual realities
and heavenly truths ; it became to Him a treasure
of golden wisdom ; it was to Him nourishment

' THE GOLDEN A B CV 169

and help on His way to the great work which was
before Him.

Some of his smaller publications are of special
interest, bringing out, in short space, a concen-
trated fullness of instruction, truth, and comfort
not often to be found in large volumes. We
may note one or two of these. There was The
Golden A B C of the Jews, Thoughts on Psalm
CXIX, which opens with the following interesting
paragraph : —

In calling the CXIXth Psalm Tlie Golden
A B C oj the Jews, Martin Luther reminds us of
the alphabetical structure, and of the excellence
and preciousness of this portion of Scripture. This
psalm is divided into as many equal parts, each
consisting of eight verses, as there are letters in
the Hebrew alphabet ; and the first of all the
verses in every one of these parts commences with
the same letter. It is probable that the plan was
devised to assist the memory, especially in com-
positions consisting of detached maxims or sen-
tences. It may also be conjectured that in the
instruction of children, which is so frequently and
earnestly urged in the law of Moses, the alphabet-
ical arrangement was chosen to arrest the attention
and to aid the memory of the young ; for this
psalm is a manual and companion for life from
youth to old age. He considered it under different
headings in The Psalm Alphabetical and Golden.

He notes its comprehensiveness. " The com-

170 'THOUGHTS ON PSALM CXIX:

prehensiveness of this psalm is very striking. It
presents to us human life in all its aspects. Every
age can find here a mirror and a sympathizing
teacher and interpreter of its deepest thoughts.''
Under one of the headings he says : " It is most
instructive to notice the position assigned in this
psalm to the Word of God. In the possession of
Scripture the Psalmist feels independent of human
teachers and traditions. The Word brings him
into communion with the mind of God. It con-
tains Divine wisdom to enlighten and guide, Divine
promises and consolations to uphold and gladden,
and Divine precepts and statutes, in keeping of
which is great peace. It needs no human interpret-
ation and elaborate comment ; for ' the entrance of
thy Word giveth light ; it maketli wise the simple.'
He who reads it diligently is wiser than the teachers
who teach him in wisdom, and the ancients who
dilute and corrupt the Word of God Avitli their
traditions. It is God's Word (as the emphatic and
constant ' Thy ' shows), and the soul knows this,
and rests on the rock of Divine authority, strength,
and love. In order to know, love, and serve God ;
to rejoice in Him; to be sure of our blessedness;
to walk in the narrow way, and to keep ourselves
unspotted from the world — we need nothing but
God's Word."

" Here is the true preventative against the leaven
of traditionalism and of naturalism.

" Unless we truly believe in the supremacy of
God's Word, unless we cleave to it with all our

THE TRACTATE, ' WEEP NOT: 171

heart and mind, honouring it above all books by
constant reading and meditation, we are in danger
of becoming the servants of men, and of being led
astray either by the tradition of antiquity or by
the ever-changing speculations of human reason.
The Bible, and no devotional books, however ex-
cellent, ought to be the main reading of Christians ;
the Bible, and not the evidence of Kevelation, must
be regarded as the great preservative against un-
belief, and as the Divine weapon strong to pull down
the fortress of unbelief."

A little tractate, Weep not, after speaking of the
compassion of Jesus as shown in the raising of the
son of the widow of Nain, proceeds: — " Look upon
Jesus in the light of the Old Testament revelation
of Jehovah, and then adore the compassionate Jesus
as Lord. Dismiss the erroneous impression of the
severity and gloom of the Old Testament Scripture,
as if the inexorable justice, the unapproachable
majesty, the awful sovereignty of God was its ex-
clusive or even predominant topic. Do not confuse
the aspect of law, or the dispensation of condem-
nation and death, with the whole Old Testament
economy, which is the revelation of Jehovah, pre-
paring as well as promising the advent of Him, in
whom we behold and possess the Father. The God
of Israel is full of mercy and compassion. He who
appeared unto Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, mani-
fested Himself, in most familiar, tender-hearted,
loving condescension ; in His love He became God

172 EXTRACTS FROM ' WEEP NOT.'

imto them, and called them His friends ; in His
mercy and compassion He considered their weakness,
their trials, and their sorrows. How human is the
God of the patriarchs and the children of the
covenant ! — as human as the mem Christ Jesus, the
centre of the New Testament is divined

" How deeply Israel was imjDressed with this
conviction of the royal supremacy of mercy in God,
we can learn from the confession of the prophet
Jonah. God sent him to Nineveh, that great city,
to cry against it, ' for their wickedness is come up
before Me.' But Jonah was unwilling to go, and
he himself explains the chief reason of his unwilling-
ness. ' I pray Thee, Lord, was not this my
saying, when 1 w^as yet in my country ? Therefore
I fled before Thee into Tarshish : for I knew that
Thou art a gracious God, and merciful, slow to
anger, and of great kindness, and repentest Thee of
the evil'

''Jehovah, merciful and compassionate, He who
condescended to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and in
great loving-kindness chose them to be His friends ;
He who had pity on Israel in their bondage, and
redeemed them out of Egypt ; He who led them
through the wilderness, and was afflicted in all their
affliction ; He came at last in the person of the
Divine Son, in Jesus, and now beholds the glory of
God in the face of Jesus Christ. Here is a full and
perfect revelation of the God of Israel, of that
tender, motherly, intense, and inexhaustible compas-
sion which breathes throughout the Old Testament.

PROFITABLE BIBLE READING. 173

Here is another explanation of the Old Testament
anthropomorphism : God became man ; and man,
originally created in the image of God, is redeemed
by the man Christ Jesus, who is God above all,
blessed for ever."

In one of his Tracts, the following passage on
'The profitable reading of the Bible' occurs: —
We do not read the Bible sufficiently in a con-
nected way. Every verse and expression, no doubt,
is of importance, and may furnish food for thought
and prayer. But we ought to read a discourse
of Christ, or an Epistle of Paul, with the endeavour
to seize the meaning, aim, and sense of the whole.
In this sense we ought to treat the Bible like any
other book, reading it with intelligent interest.
Without the Spirit of God we cannot discern
spiritual things. But reverential reading of the
Bible must include the lower attitude of attention,
exertion of mind, and earnestness. Take for
instance the Epistle of Paul to the Philippians.
When and where was it written ? What do we
know^ of the Church of Philippi ? What state of
mind does it reveal in the Apostles ? Eead the
whole as a whole. What is its aim? Then you
will learn, and feel, and, breathing a pure atmo-
sphere, be refreshed and strengthened. This correct
reading of Scripture ought to go hand-in-hand,
daily, with a more minute examination of a few
verses. A single Scripture expression may bring
light, peace, and guidance.

174 TOUR UP THE RHINE.

The reading of Scripture cannot be urged too
much, but it may be urged vaguely. The Spirit
is promised, but one result of the Spirit's influence
is an honest application of the mind to the Bible.
If we read in a kind of m.ental paralysis, with
a very stern feeling of performing a duty which
somehow or other will benefit us, we misunderstand
the nature of the Bible. It is given by the Spirit
to convince, instruct, comfort, guide, and this
through the understanding, conscience, emotions ;
therefore we have in the Bible, history, conquest,
poetry, maxims, suggestions, appeals ; all that is
within us is exercised by this Word ; and the
more the Spirit aids us, the more will all our
mental and moral faculties be brought into activity
in reading of Scripture. Again I say: Frequent,
copious, honest reading of the Bible, in dependence
on the grace of God, who alone giveth the
increase."

Early in the winter of 1863, Dr. Norman
Macleod ; his brother Donald, Saphir's student
friend and correspondent ; Saphir, and Fleming
Stevenson had a delightful tour up the Rhine,
visiting Kaiserswerth, Elberfeld, and other centres
of Christian work. An account of it appeared
in the May number of Good Words of 1863,
entitled ' Up the Rhine in Winter, by Four
Travellers,' and signed with the initials N. McL.,
A. S., W. F. S., and D. McL. Saphir greatly
enjoyed the tour, and wrote a part of the narrative.

175

CHAPTER XVI.

FAME IN LONDON.

Narrative by Mr. James E. Mathieson — Address in Stafford
Rooms — Impression on Brownlovv North — Address repeated
in Hanover Square Eooms — Lord Shaftesbury — This
address the Basis of Christ and the Scriptures — Action
as to Hymns — Value as a Teacher.

WE devote this chapter to a sketch kindly
forwarded to us by Mr. James E.
Mathieson, so long at the head of the work at
Mildmay, who was one of Saphir's most devoted
and beloved friends. It shows how he was brought
prominently before the great public of London.

The revival of 1859-60 was nowhere welcomed
with greater joy than in the Paddington Branch
of the Young Men's Christian Association, Stafford
Eooms, Tichborne Street, where the saintly Henry
Hull was then superintendent. A blessed work
of grace was there witnessed and fostered both
by H. Hull and his successor, C. Eussell Hurditch.
It was in the year 1864 or 1865 that the latter,
always on the look-out for some one who would
help in stimulating the Christian growth of young
believers, invited Mr. Saphir, at that time a

176 LORD SHAFTESBURY.

minister in Greenwich, to come and give an
address at an evening meeting ; and a memorable
address it proved to be.

Amongst others who listened to it with rapt
attention was the late Brownlow North, at that
time in the height of his power as a lay preacher.
He felt it was too good to be limited to the roomful
of people who first heard it ; and Saphir agreed
to re-deliver it, some weeks later, at a meeting
in Hanover Square Rooms, where good Lord
Shaftesbury took the chair. He, in like manner,
was greatly struck by the ability and the con-
vincing power of the speaker, who drew his
arguments and illustrations entirely from the
Bible, with which he displayed a masterly
familiarity.

This address formed the basis of what is perhaps
Saphir's ablest and most useful contribution to
Evangelical literature, CJirist and the Scriptures ;
a little book which has been circulated in tens of
thousands, and is to-day more needed for correction
of unsound views than at any time since it was
first published. It was the forerunner of many
other weighty volumes ; but it is the book by
which he will longest survive as an author.

The Presbyterian Church in England, like her
sister Churches in the North, for long years was
restricted in her public service of praise to the use
of the Psalms in metrical version. After an internal
controversy of some years' duration, the use of
hymns was permitted, and a hymn-book had to be

ACTION AS TO HYMNS. 177

compiled under the roof and the genial presidency
of the late Dr. James Hamilton, of Eegent Square
Church. The suggestion and the selection of the
hymns was altogether in the line of Saphir's acute,
discriminating, and truth-loving mind ; he seemed
instinctively to reject error or any mis-statement
of revealed truth. One of the hymns which he
suggested was that by Dr. H. Bonar : —

" The Church has waited long
Her absent Lord to see ; "

in the first verse of which occurs the words : —

'' And still in weeds of widowhood
She weeps a mourner yet."

The introduction of this hymn was opposed by a
minister from Lancashire, more noted for the
vehemence than the validity of his opinions.
"You will wreck your hymn-book," said he,
**if you insert hymns like that. The Church is
not in her widowhood." Saphir quietly replied,
'* I thought it was the apostate Church which said,
' I sit as a queen, and am no widow, and shall
see no sorrow.' " The hymn was rejected, and I
believe Saphir assisted no more in the endeavour
to make or to mar the new hymn-book. But in
this incident was noticeable his love of the thought
of our Lord's personal appearing. This blessed
hope of Christ's pre-millenial return gleamed like
a golden thread throug;h, and coloured with a
heavenly brilliance, all his teachings. The revival
already referred to — like all modern revivals — had

178 SAPHIR'S VALUE AS A TEACHER

brought this belief of the Apostolic Church into
new prominence, and had given it a place in
Christian thought such as it never before has
occupied since the first Christian age.

Saphir's proximity to London during his ex-
tended ministry in the suburb of Greenwich, and
his occasional preaching in the pulpits of some of
his co-presbyters in the metropolis, revealed his
value as a teacher to a gradually increasing number
of men and women, who loved and appreciated
the truth as presented in his own masterly fashion.
He seemed to combine the gentleness and simplicity
of a child with the firm grasp of a strong man,
when he dealt with Holy Scripture. No halting or
hesitating utterance could be detected in his voice
or manner, as he dwelt upon the deep things of
God, and lucidly spread out before a hushed
audience the magnificent truths concerning Jesus
Christ and God's way of salvation. There was
none of the obscurity which sometimes passes for
profundity in his preaching ; very young listeners
understood his meaning ; experienced believers were
enriched by his discourse ; anxious souls were com-
forted ; doubting ones found deliverance. After
enjoying the privilege of sitting at the feet of this
master in Israel for a season, other ministrations
seemed meagre, colourless, weak. He knew and
handled Old Testament Scripture as perhaps only a
son of Abraham could. Moses and the Psalmists
and the Prophets were his familiar friends and
intimates ; and he clearly perceived that ignorance

HIS FAITHFULNESS. 179

and neglect of the prophetic Word can well account
both for the hollowness and declension in doctrine
which characterize these last days.

Like his great countryman St. Paul, whom he
resembled in the weakness of his body as well as
in spiritual insight and might, he shunned not to
declare to his hearers " the whole counsel of God,"
and his faithfulness found a reward even here ni
a large circle of attached and appreciative Christian
friends from every Evangelical branch of the
Church. He is one of the examples in this age,
of what will happeji in the next, when fully
persuaded Jews will carry the gospel into all the
world with a persuasiveness which no unbelief
will be able to withstand.

180

CHAPTER XVII.

'CHRIST AND THE SCRIPTURES.'

Its Importance and Originality — Short Survey of its Argu-
ments — The Second Coming of Christ — Opposition to the
"Broad Church" Theology— The Lord's Prayer— The
Future Kingdom.

THE remarkable address referred to in the
previous chapter was shortly issued in an
expanded form under the title of Clirist and the
Scriptures. The volume produced at once a deep
impression, and added much to his fame. It is a
wonderful book in short compass ; it silently
refutes more perhaps than any other book of recent
times — usino; the word recent in a laroe sense —
the scepticism and unbelief of the day. AVe there-
fore note, at some length, its positions, as it
brings most clearly out the leading points of his
theology. It begins with a forcible sentence : —

" In the volume of the Book it is written of
Me." Martin Luther asks, " AVhat Book and what
Person ? " " There is only one Book," is his reply,
"Scripture; and only one Person — Jesus Christ."

Its great principle is that " there subsists an

CHRIST AND THE SCRIPTURES: 181

essential and vital connection " between the eternal
Word of God and that written AVord " which
testifies of Him, of His person and work, of His
sufferings and glory." " It is impossible for us to
understand the nature of Scripture unless we view
it in relation to the Son of God, the Messiah of
Israel, the Eedeemer of God's people ; for He is the
centre and kernel of the inspired record."

He notes as a striking peculiarity of our age
that the attention of thoughtful minds is so pre-
eminently fixed on Christ. In no age have there
been so many attempts made to reconstruct, so to
speak, the history of Jesus. We need not be
astonished at the strange misconceptions and
grievous errors into which men fall, who are trying
to understand Jesus, as they understand other his-
torical men. He is not even in His humanity
intelligible, except on the territory of revelation.
When the beauty of Christ's character, and the
simplicity and depth of His teaching, attract men's
minds, they flatter themselves that Jesus is the
efflorescence of humanity, that history has produced
Him, that nature is glorified in Him. But Jesus
is above all, because He is from above. He came
in the fullness of time, and belonged to Israel ; the
God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is the God and
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. There is an
organic, vital, and necessary connection between
the Christ and the nation. There is a nation
different from all nations — the Jews — chosen by
God that He may reveal Himself to and through

182 'CHRIST AND THE SCRIPTURES:

them ; there is a Man different from all men — the
Lord from heaven, Jesus the Son of David, the Son
of God, Messiah of Israel and Head of the Church ;
and there is a Booh different from all other books —
the record of God's dealings with Israel, culminating
in the manifestation of that Eedeemer, whose
goings forth are from of old, even from everlasting.
The same Spirit of God convinces us of the
supremacy of Christ and of the supremacy of
Scripture.

As the hearts of men are attracted by Jesus
Christ as the only Prophet, Priest, and King,
their minds are filled with reverence and love for
the Scriptures. The Eeformation is based upon
the two principles : Christ only, Christ above all ;
and the Scriptures only, the Bible above all human
authority. Higher than the Bible is not reason,
not the Church, not the Christian consciousness,
but the Holy Ghost, who reveals Christ in the
written Word, so that it becomes to us what it
truly is, the Word of God, the voice of the
Beloved.

This is the basis or theology of the book.

He considers the method in wdiich Christ re-
garded and treated the Scriptures. He shows
that Jesus in His general teaching constantly
made use of the Scriptures, and not only so,
but that there were concealed allusions to the
Scriptures through the teaching, as in the Sermon
on the Mount. "All Christ's thoughts and expres*

ITS ARGUMENT SURVEYED. 183

sioDS have been moulded in that wonderful school
of teaching which God had given to His chosen
people. From the Inner Circle of His disciples He
is constantly referriug to the Scriptures as fulfilled
in Him, as in the i^assage, ' Then He took unto
Him the twelve, and said unto them. Behold, we
go up to Jerusalem, and all things that are ivritten
hy the 2^^'02^hets concerning the Son of Man shall
he accomplisliecV In the facts 23receding His
crucifixion, frequent reference is made by Him to
the fulfilling of Scripture, and after the Eesur-
rection He said, but ' all things must be fulfilled
which were written in the law of Moses, and in
the Prophets, and in the Psalms concerning Me.'
He opened their understanding, that they might
understand the Scriptures. And again, in His
conflicts and prayers. In the Temptation He does
not appeal to His own feelings ; He does not bring
forward thoughts and feelings, but the written
Word. Three times He refers to the Scriptures.
Even in glory He constantly refers to the Scrip-
tures. In the Epistles to the seven churches. He
speaks of the tree of life in the paradise of God ;
He refers to the history of Israel in the wilderness ;
He speaks of the manna, of the key of David,
of the true temple, and of the New Jerusalem.
' Behold, I stand at the door and knock ' is the
voice of Jesus from heaven, even as, in the Song
of Solomon, the bridegroom speaks in the same
language. One of the last sayings of Christ is the
most comprehensive as well as concise summary of

184 NEW TESTAMENT HINGES ON OLD.

the whole writings of Moses and the Prophets.
'/ am the I'oot and ojfsjn'ing of David.'''

He shows that the New Testament cannot be
intelligently understood, without using the Old
Testament as a kind of dictionary : — " The thought
of many is, I can read all about Jesus, much
better described, more clearly and more fully,
in the New Testament. I believe this to be
erroneous, and in part bordering on superstition.
Take the Gospels : how can we understand them
without Moses and the Prophets ? The very
first verse of Matthew is unintelligible : ' The book
of the generation of Jesus Christ, the Son of
David, the Son of Abraham.' AVho is David ? —
who Abraham ? What meaning is there in this
genealogy ? " "If Ave want to understand the
Gospels, the life and teaching of Jesus, we require
the same preparation as Israel enjoyed." He
shows how, not only through all the Apostolic
appeals to the people, but through all the Epistles,
there is the unfolding of the meaning of the Old
Testament. " You cannot read the ' New Testa-
ment ' without using the ' Old ' as a dictionary ;
and it is a very superficial view that because we
see the word ' Jesus,' and the word ' Lamb,' and
the words ' blood ' and ' mercy seat,' we have
therefore clear and full views, and solid and sub-
stantial ground of confidence, comfort, and hope.
Unless we know the meaning which God has
attached to these words, a meanino* which is ex-

THE FALL AND REDEMPTION. 18/

plained in the history, the types, the institution,
and the prophecy given to Israel, we do not rest
on a solid basis, we are not feeding on nourishing
food, we are not growing by the sincere milk of
the Word."

He describes in detail the leading characteristics
of the Bible first, as to the fall and redemption : —
" The Sublime Doctrine as to God, the law of God,
Eedemption. Take a beautiful vase, a masterpiece
of art, and dash it to the ground, so that it is
shattered into a hundred pieces. AYho can restore
it ? Who can unite the fragments, so that the
harmony of the original will again show forth the
master's skill and thought ? Yet what is this
compared to the Fall ? What a redemption !
Full pardon of sin, so that our souls are whiter
than the snow ; condemnation is removed, and
the kingdom of heaven is opened ; the heart is
changed, the will set free, the mind enlightened.
Man never could have conceived this. We can
only exclaim, ' Oh, the depth of the riches, both of
the wisdom and knowledge of God ! how unsearch-
able are His judgments, and His ways past finding
out ! ' "

There is next the characteristic of prophecy,
which he regards as interwoven with the whole
texture of the Bible : — " The element of prediction
in Scripture has been lately undervalued, and
under the specious plea that the moral and

186 (1HARACTERISTI0S OF PROPHECY.

spiritual, the ethical element in the prophets
is the chief thing. This is a confusion of ideas.
All prediction which is scriptural is ethical, or
rather spiritual, because it refers to the kingdom
of God, and to the centre — Christ. But the
spiritual element is intimately connected with
the fact, the continued manifestations and o^ifts
of God to His people. That Scripture pre-
diction is throughout ethical, that it differs from
all soothsaying, from the foretelling of isolated
events and incidents to satisfy curiosity ; that it
is organically connected with the Divine education
of Israel, full of principles, warning, guidance, and
encouragement for the people to wdiom it is given,
ought to be perfectly plain to every reader of the
Bible. But equally clear it is, that Scripture
predicts events which none could have foreseen."
Numerous instances are given of this : as the
promise to Abram that in his seed all families of
the earth should be blessed ; the predictions of
Christ ; His birth as man and yet His Divine
nature — Immanuel, Wonderful, Counsellor, the
mighty God, &c. ; His descent from David, so clear
that no doubt was ever entertained on the subject ;
the place of His birth ; the time, so that the whole
nation was waiting for Him when He appeared ;
the messenger to precede Him ; His character. His
work. His preaching good tidings unto the meek ;
His rejection ; His death as the Paschal Lamb ;
the' minute circumstances connected with His
death; His resurrection, His ascension, &c. ; the

THE BIBLE AND THE APOCRYPHA. 187

outpouring of the Spirit ; the going forth of the
gospel to the Gentiles. Then what clear predictions
as to the Jews, their realizing their misery, their
preservation ! No wonder that the greatest philo-
sopher of our age (Hegel) felt the Jewish history
a dark and perplexing enigma. Then the pro-
phecies as to Babylon and the various lieathen
nations — all so literally fulfilled.

He then shows how this Book differs absolutely
from all other books, as brought out forcibly in
attempted imitations : — What a contrast with the
Apocrypha ! What a startling ditference between
the four Evangelists and the apocryphal Gospels, or
between the apostolic Epistles and the apostolic
Fathers. As Neander says : — " There is no gentle
gradation here, but all at once an abrupt transi-
tion from one style of language to the other, a
phenomenon which should lead us to acknowledge
the fact of a special agency of the Divine Spirit
in the souls of the Apostles, and of a new
creative element in the first period. As to the
apocryphal Gospels, with their childish fiiUacies, it
is significant that in the Gospel of John (ii.) the
miracle at Cana is described as the beginning
of miracles which Jesus did, thus excluding all
the miracles ascribed by tradition to Christ's
childhood."

He notices the wonderful — truly miraculous —
nianner, in which both sections of the Scriptures

1.S8 THE JEWS' CARE OF SACRED WRITINGS.

have been preserved : — " The Jews have carefully
watched over the letter of their sacred writinofs.
The most accurate and diligent research has
availed to discover only trifling variations in
the manuscripts. This is still more wonderful
when we consider by whom these writings were
preserved. The Jews, who reject the Messiah of
whom Moses and the Prophets testify, preserve the
very books which prove their unbelief, and convince
the world of the Divine authority and mission of
Jesus. And where is there a nation preserving
carefully a record, which so rej)eatedly and emphati-
cally declares that they are obstinate, ungrateful,
and perverse, and which attributes all their excel-
lences, not to their natural disposition and qualities,
nor to their energy and merit, but exclusively to
the mercy and power of God ? " Niebuhr says, " The
Old Testament stands perfectly alone as an excep-
tion from the untruth of patriotism. Its truthful-
ness is the highest in all historical writings. ... I
must also ascribe to it the most minute accuracy."
And as to the Church of Rome preserving the
writings of Evangelists and Apostles, what could
be more marvellous ? These writings declare that
Christ hath perfected by one sacrifice them that are
sanctified ; that salvation is by grace througli faith,
and that not of ourselves, it is the gift of God ; that
all believers are kings and priests unto God ; that
there is no mediator between God and man but the
man Christ Jesus ; that Peter himself savoured of
the things that are of men, and not of the things

CHRIST AND THE SCRIPTURES. 189

that are of God, and had, even after Pentecost, to
be severely rebuked and energetically resisted by
Paul ; that Mary is told by the Saviour Himself
not to interfere in the concerns of His Kinodom ;
that freely we have received, and freely we must
give ; that men forbidding to marry and command-
ing to abstain from meat, are the expected false
teachers ; that in the congregation we are not to
pray in an unknown tongue ; and that Christians
are commended for subjecting even the teaching of
the Apostles to the authority and confirmation of
the Scripture. " The Jews bear unwilling witness
to Jesus, and Rome has carefully preserved and
transcribed her own condemnation."

The Bible stands alone in its adaptability to
all nations and all classes of people, and to all
circumstances.

The resemblance between the person of Christ
and the Scriptures, in the Divine and perfectly
human aspects of both, is traced out in the following-
passages ; also the contrast in method between the
Scriptures and the creeds are both revelations
of God ; Jmman and Divine, Jewish and Catholic.
Jesus, the true, real, humble humanity, was not
concealed ; on the contrary, in all simplicity, undis-
guised, unadorned, without an attempt to invest
Himself in appearance, manner, speech, with any-
thing imposing or mysterious, Jesus lived, spake,
and walked as man. So with the Bible. The style
of the book is human, more especially Oriental.

190 JESUS A TRUE ISRAELITE.

Men say, Is not this a human book ? Is it not
Eastern in language, diction, thought, and imagery ?
Do we not meet its brothers and sisters, books of
cosfnate tribes ? The human element, or rather
aspect, is very prominent.

The Bible contains poetry, parables, riddles,
maxims, letters, every variety of human composi-
tion. But this human character in no way militates
against its Diviue origin. It was God's gracious
purpose that the Word should become flesh. Jesus
was true man and very God. The Bible is in the
form of a servant, human, yet Divine in its origin,
truth, and power.

Jesus was a true Israelite. For this very reason
is Jesus the man for all men of all nations. The
Jews wTre chosen to be a nation separate, but in
order to bless all mankind. The purpose of their
election is universal. The secret aim of their
isolation is expansion ; the very joy and glory of
their destiny is a world-w^ide influence. Jesus as
the King of the Jews, Jesus as the true Israel, is
appointed to draw all men, and to rule all men.
So is the Scripture Jewish and universal — universal
not in spite of, but in virtue of, its Jewish character.
Its Jewish character is not a garment in which it
is accidentally clothed ; it is the body wdiich the
Spirit, according to God's plan, has prepared.
Eliminate the Jewish character, and you lose the
essence. The Paoan and Gentile element has to
a great extent been the source of error.

THE BIBLE A LIVING ORGAN ESM. 191

Our theology is far too abstract, unhistorical ;
looking at doctrines logically instead of in connection
with the Kingdom and the Church. It is Japhetic,
not Shemitic ; it is Roman, logical, well- arranged,
methodized, and scheduled ; not Eastern, according
to the spirit and method of the Scriptures, which
breathes in the atmosphere of a living God, who
visits His people, and is coming again to manifest
His glory. The Bible is as a living organism. " It
is a body animated by one Spirit. Who would
assert that a chapter of names in the book of
Chronicles is as important and precious as the third
chapter of St. John's Gospel ? — or that the account
of Paul's shipwreck is as essential as the account of
Christ's sufferings ? But what w^e say is, that all
Scripture is one organism, and that the same
wisdom and love have formed the wdiole ; and that
even to every branch, and bough, and leaf, it lives
and breathes, and is beautiful and very good. And
the reason why many historical and statistical and
prophetical portions of Scripture seem to us unim-
portant and even unnecessary, is because we do not
sufficiently live in the whole circle of Divine ideas
and purposes."

All Divine revelations have Christ not merely
for their Mediator, but for their centre. We have
not merely a succession of prophetic announcements
of His coming. His work, and glory, but in all
God's dealings with Israel He revealed Himself to
them in Christ. Abraham beheld the day of Christ ;

192 THE QJJEiiTION OF INSPIEATIOX.

the E,ock that followed Israel through the wilderness
was Christ. In his love and sympathy, in his
sufferings and faith, David was a type of the great
Shepherd-King, even as Solomon prefigured His
glory and widespread dominion. Through all the
festivals and sacrifices shone the light of God in
Christ. That God would descend from heaven to
earth was impressed on Israel by the constant
appearance of God as angel or messenger : as iVngel
of the Covenant, Angel in whom is God's Name, as
God manifest, whom man can see face to face . . .
And as Christ's ]3erson was the substance of all
Jewish history and Scripture, His sufferings were
continually witnessed to in \vord, type, and
experience.

The question of inspiration he treats very full}',
and the close connection between the inspiration
of the Book and the indwelling of the Spirit in the
hearts of God's people : —

Some have objected in recent times to the doctrine
of inspiration on the plea that Scripture itself does
not assert such a fact. But this is erroneous ; not
merely does Scripture fully and distinctly assert
the doctrine, but the whole teaching of Scripture
indirectly confirms this view\ In most cases, wiiere
inspiration is doubted, it is based on ignorance of
what is meant by " The Holy Ghost." It is because
people do not believe that only the Spirit of God
can reveal the things of God and Christ to our
spirit, that they have no firm belief and enlightened

CHRIST AND THE SCRIPTURES. 193

view as to the Spirit's special work — the Scripture.
Had a scriptural view of the person and work of
the Holy Ghost been more powerfully prevalent in
the Church, not merely in her formularies, but in
reality and life, there never would have been so
much occasion given to represent the teaching of
the Church on the inspiration of Scripture as
mechanical, " converting men into automata," and
the whole question would not have assumed such a
scholastic and metaphysical form. For then the
living testimony and the written testimony would
appear both as supernatural and Spirit-breathed.
The more the supremacy of the Holy Ghost, Divine,
loving, and present, is acknowledged, the more the
Bible is fixed in the heart and conscience. But if
the " Book " is received as the relic and substitute
of a now absent and inactive Spirit, Bibliolatry
and Bible -rejection are the necessary results. *'' The
Spirit of Jehovah, the prophets assert, came upon
them. It is an influence from without, and from
above." '' Isaiah's mouth is touched with a live
coal from oft' the altar." To Jeremiah Jehovah
saith, " Behold, I have put My word in thy mouth."
" Ezekiel received and ate the roll God gave him."
The Lord and the Apostles sometimes mention the
name of the individual writer, in quoting from the
Old Testament, but more frequently the words are
used, "The Scripture saith," or, ^'The Holy Gliost
saith " : —

The manner in which the Scripture is quoted

194 'THE TRUE AUTHOR Oh THE RECORD:

by our Saviour, the Evangelists, and the Apostles,
clearly shows that they regarded the men by whom
the Word was written as the instruments, but the
Lord, and more especially the Spirit, as the true
Author of the whole organism of the Jewish record.
We must distinguish between the inspiration of the
Prophets and Apostles as men, and their inspiration
as writers. As ivriters they w^ere perfectly and
adequately guided by the Holy Ghost ; "as men
they were eminent, but still on the same level with
other disciples of Christ." " Peter and Paul believed
the testimony they received from God, and so do
we, in believing through their writings, accept a
Divine testimony." " The quotations of Paul show
that he regarded the inspiration as extending to
the very form of expression." Paul derives an
argument not merely from a word, but from the
silence of Scripture. The circumstance that Scripture
does not mention Melchizedek's parentage is in
Paul's estimation significant ; and thus even as in
music, not only the notes, but also the pauses are
according to the mind and plan of the composer,
and instinct with the life and spirit which breathe
through the whole, the very omissions of Scripture,
be they of great mysteries, such as the fall of the
angels, or of minute details, such as the descent of
the King of Salem, are not the result of chance,
but " according to the wisdom of that Eternal
Spirit who is the true author of the record."

He shows that there is no inconsistency between

INSPIRATION OF SCRIPTURE. 195

the idea of the inspiration of Scripture and of the
individuality and activity of mind of the writers ;
that there is nothing mechanical, nor were the
writers amanuenses.

The most common objection urged against this
view is, that it is inconsistent with the individuality
of the writers. But *' both facts are sure and
apparent." In the writings of the Apostles and
Prophets we see " the influence of their history,
character, disposition, and mode of thought. It is
evident that the Spirit did not destroy mens
individuality, and that their peculiar history, ex-
perience, and conformation of mind, formed not an
obstacle, but a medium." The confusion arises from
a mistaken view of individuality. Error and sin are
not essential elements of individuality. A man
free from error and sin does not thereby lose his
individuality ; on the contrary, he gains it in the
fullest sense. God's children alone have individu-
ality in the highest sense of the word. The saints
in heaven will have the most marked individuality.
The Scripture authors, inspired, yet individual and
free, give us some idea of our future state. The
inspiration of Scripture is a fact, not a theory. The
fact is that the Scriptures, though written by men,
are of God, and that the ideas they unfold are
clothed in such words as He in His wisdom and
love intended, so that they may be safely and fully
received as expressions of His mind, and the
thoughts which He purposed to convey to us for
our instruction and Guidance. When such a view

196 THE STYLE OF SCRIPTURE,

is described and condemned as mecJianical, there
is, after all, nothing said and proved. All recognize
to the fullest extent the individuality and circum-
stance and intense feelings of the writers that they
were not amanuenses. In speaking of the style of
Scripture he says : — " As the ocean is to the river,
so is the Bible style to that of even the most
spiritual and profound men. For in the Bible
everything is viewed from the highest point, and
according to its true essence and position in the
history of the Divine economy. In the Bible we
breathe the atmosphere of eternity." " Scripture
speaks to man and ' all that is in him ' (Psalm
ciii. 1), and the inmost and hidden centre, from
which proceed all thoughts, words, and works."
"It is homely and confidential. Its tone is Mherly,
friendly, winning our trust and breathing out love,"
'^ wonderfully comprehensive, and yet very minute
and personal, uncompromising and stern, and yet
most considerate and tender."

Finally he points out the dangers of a lifeless
orthodoxy : — The mere worship of the letter apart
from the spirit, as by the Jews who rejected Jesus,
is Bibliolatry. There has been to a great extent
" text " preaching, instead of " Word of God "
preaching. The Bible must be read carefully and
prayerfully, and the Holy Spirit's power must be
sought to interpret it to us ; but by the Word,
and the AVord alone, cometli light.

BOOK ON 'THE LORD'S PRAYER: 197

Clirist and the Scriptures is the most powerful
of all the books written by Dr. Saphir, except his
lectures on The Divine Unity of Scripture, pub-
lished since his death, which express the same
views more fully, and treat of a wider range of
subjects. It was translated into German by Frau-
lein von Lanzizolle, a lady connected with the
Prussian Court, and has been much read in Ger-
many, where it was considered by Delitzsch and
others that it had been a chief means of producing
in the German churches, among ministers especially,
a great revival of religious faith and life.

The book on the LorcVs Prayer, written also
during his Greenwich ministry, contains much that
is original, and gives distinctly his view of the
future Kingdom of Christ. Of the invocation he
says :—

" The invocation contains mysteries. When we
sav ' Father,' we think of the mystery of the Father
and His Son Jesus Christ ; we remember the great
mystery of godliness, God manifest in the flesh ;
and we rejoice with thanksgiving in the mystery of
our new birth by the word of truth.

" When we say ' our,' we think of the mystery
of the Church, the body of Christ.

" When we say ' which art in heaven,' we think
of the citizenship of the children, whom the world
knoweth not, and of the inheritance reserved for
them ; we think of the number which have entered
within the veil ; and of the sanctuary, where the
Eternal High Priest is enthroned. ...

198 'THY KINGDOM COME.

*' The word ' Father ' appeals more directly to
our faith ; ' our,' to our love ; ' in heaven,' to our
hope ; — more directly, but not exclusively. And
bearing this general division in mind, not observhig
it rigorously, let us consider the filial, the brotherly,
the heavenly spirit of the believer. . . .

"Beholding in Jesus the image of the invisible
God — believing that God is indeed our loving Father,
let us cultivate a simpler trust, a more loving
confidence, a more bright and sunny calmness in
prayer and meditation. Let the word * Father '
be to us, not so much the exponent of a scriptural
and theological dogma, as the utterance of a peace-
ful and radiant truth."

The petition — " Thy kingdom come," refers
primarily and directly to the Messianic Kingdom
on earth, of which all Scripture testifies. . . .
The King of this kingdom is the Lord Jesus,
the Son of David ; the subjects of it are Israel
and the nations — the chosen people fulfilling the
mission which, according to the election of God,
is assigned unto them, of being the medium of
blessing unto all the nations of the earth ; the
centre of the kingdom is Jerusalem, and the means
of its establishment is the coming and the visible
appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ. When we
pray *'Thy Kingdom come," our true meaning is
Come, Lord Jesus, come quickly ! . . . No doc-
trine, not even the fundamental doctrine of justifi-
cation by faith, has assigned to it in the inspired

THE SECOND ADVENT. 190

Word so large a place as the doctrine of the second
coming of Christ and His Kingdom. It is not
confined to a few isolated passages, it is not the
subject of one or two books of Scripture, but it
pervades the whole Bible. When we are asked,
Where is it spoken of ? we are tempted to reply,
Ask rather, where is it not spoken of ? . . .

" It is true that much obscurity attaches to
prophecy as regards detail, and the chronological
sequence of events. It is also conceded that it
is very difficult, and sometimes almost impossible,
to conceive the manner in which predicted events
will be brought about, and that we can only rest
by faith in the wisdom and power of God, who will
surely fulfil His Word, and to whom all things are
possible. But that the general outline of prophecy
is vague and indistinct must be emphatically
denied. The Scripture gives forth no uncertain
sound as to the great question, Is Jesus to come
before or after the kingdom of righteousness and
peace ? No truth is more fully and more clearly
taught in Scripture than this — that the promises
given to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, renewed to
David, and confirmed by the Prophets, and finally
by the Lord Jesus Himself, will yet be fulfilled on
earth ; that Israel is not merely a type of the
Church, but has a future before it, in which it will
have a central position on earth ; and that before
the final judgment there will be a glorious kingdom
ushered in by the coming, t\\Q]parousia, of Christ."

200 'BROAD CnURCir THEOLOGY.

Sapliir never took his theology from creeds
or formulas, but fresh from the fountain of the
Scriptures. In all creeds, at least of any length,
he held that there was much mere human philo-
sophy, of the period in which they were prepared.
At the same time, so far from any, the slightest,
tendency to the vague teaching of many in the
present day, Saphir's immense knowledge of Scrip-
ture led him to cleave more closely, and with more
real power, to the great principles of Christianity —
the authority of Scripture as from God — the atone-
ment — the Spirit's power — the Kingdom. The
Broad Cliurch theology of the day, which is so
greatly undermining the position of all the Churches,
is not so much a battle against creeds, though it
assails their positive statements of doctrine, as
directly against the authority of Scripture, and
against the supernatural ; in fact against the
foundation principles of Christianity.

201

CHAPTER XVllI.

CLOSE OF MINISTRY AT GREENWICH.

Sketch of Mr. aud Mrs. Saphir by Canon McCormick — His
Health failing — Always Fragile — Leave of Absence for a
Year — Typhoid Fever in the Engadine — His Influence
there — Return in 1871 — Resignation of his Charge in
1872.

A DEVOTED friend, the Rev. Canon McCormick,
now of Hull, who was vicar of a church at
Greenwich at this time, sends us a vigorous, life-
like sketch of Saphir and his work —

Adolph Saphir was most loved by those who
understood him best. He wanted knowing to be
thoroughly appreciated ; not that there was any
ditHculty in deciphering his character. He was
thoroughly open and transparent, but he was many-
sided. Though an honest Presbyterian, he was
broad in his sympathies, and catholic in the truest
and best sense of the term. This may be accounted
for by the breadth of his reading. He was remark-
ably familiar with the theology of tlie Church of
England, and could quote Pusey as well as Maurice

or Moule. I sometimes told him that he ought to

o

202 SKETCH BY CANON McCORMICK.

be in the Gliurcli of England l)ecause of its his-
torical continuity, and because his influence for
good would be greater and wider ; but he held
strons: views, adverse to the connection of Church
and State. I need not enlarge upon those views,
for this would necessitate some attempt at their
refutation, from my stand-point.

It was thought that at one time he was half
a Plymouth Brother ; nothing could have been
farther from the truth. He recognized what he
thought to be good amongst the Brethren, but he
was opposed to many of their distinctive tenets.
It might just as well be said that lie was half a
Ritualist, because he considered that Dr. Pusey
and his school had got hold of the right end of
the stick, in speaking of the Church as a spiritual
kino-dom. llie fact was that his catholic mind

o

led him to cull the sweetest and best flowers out
of every religious garden.

His real sympathies were with the old Evan-
gelical school of thought. He was a decided,
though a moderate, Calvinist, and held that every
one who understood the election in relation to
Israel must, as a consequence, be so. But apart
from what may be termed orthodox lines, he was
wise, tolerant, just, and often very original. You
never quite knew where to find him, in some of his
religious flights. Here he was with Pascal ; then
with Newman. He was up in the skies with
Edward Irving, or plodding in metaphysics with
John Duncan. He had the greatest respect for

SAPHIR ALWAYS FRAGILE. 203

Spurgeoii, and he once said to me, " Spurgeon is a
genuine article. He is simple, straight, godly ; and
has not been led astray by any of the modern fads."

Like many a great man, he drew you out in
conversation, and polished up your ideas with a
brilliancy that made you wonder. While he picked
your brains he taught you himself. There was a
raciness about his conversations, and sometimes
his sermons, that was charming and inimitable.
He had as much fun in him as an Irishman, and at
times with as lit4:le restraint. On a wet night,
when his congregation was small, he suddenly
exclaimed, " My brethren, the early Christians were
fire-proof" ; and then, after a slight pause, with a
little significant shrug of the shoulders, he added,
" The Christians of to-day are not even water-
proof."

Some of his great admirers thought that he
might have worked harder than he did, and blamed
his wife for restraining him. My own opinion is
that she helped to keep him alive. He was a ver}'
fragile plant, that a rough wind might easily blow
away. Moreover, his sensibilities were of the finest
and most delicate order, and he felt the ordinary
worries and oppositions of life, in an injurious
manner. He could not shake them otf, as more
robust natures do. After writing some of his
sermons he was perfectly prostrate, and remained
so for hours together. " My difficulty," he told me,
" does not lie in preparing a sermon, but in getting
into a right spirit to preach it."

204 HIS SWEET AND LOVING DISPOSITION.

His real nature was very gentle, and his sym-
pathy with sufferers very tender. How emotion
swayed him, if there was the slightest allusion made
to his only child, taken from him when so young !
What he thought of his lost one underlies the many
references in his sermons to children. The love for
his wife, so sweet and j^layful, up to the last, was
delightful to witness. His friendships were alike
genuine and lasting. He was a John in his love
for his Master and the whole company of believers,
because like John he was always laying his head
upon the Saviour's breast, and listening to the
beating of His great heart of love for him, and for
those whom the Father had given to Him.

Dr. Saphir told me that as a Jewish boy he
was often troubled with a sense of sin. More than
once he asked the Eabbi what he was to do, and
invariably received answer that he w^as to repent
and amend. " I did repent, and I tried to amend,"
said Saphir, " but I was no better. How could 1
know when I was forgiven ? How could 1 tell
when my repentance reached the stage of satis-
faction '? If we have to turn in upon ourselves to
find peace of conscience, we never can be happy,
for we never can find it."

There had been every encouragement in the
Greenwich ministry. The church had been twice
enlarged, and the attendance was overflowing.
Numbers of devoted friends had gathered around

HIS GREAT SUCCESS AS A PREACHER. 205

him. He had not the mere success of a popular
preacher, but lie aroused deep love of Scripture
truth, and sent many to read their Bibles with
care ; for he threw such an interest around the
writers and writino^s of both the Old and New
Testament, that they seemed to have a different
aspect. His sermons and addresses were listened
to with rapt interest, and greatly blessed, and
thousands have retained and will retain the im-
pression of them to their dying hour. The Jews
have in recent times produced many able preachers,
as the Herschells, Edersheim, Schwartz, but none
who possessed such a masterly power of treating
the Scriptures connectedly, and showing the
person of Jesus revealed not only in the
Gospels, but in the sublime prophecies of old.
There was a sanctified genius, an intellectual
clearness, a terseness of expression, a glow of
spirit which commanded attention and kindled
enthusiasm. People sat as under a spell, while
with calmness, yet glowing expression, in his deep
penetrating voice, with attitude almost unmoved,
reading as it were on his finger-nails, he expressed
with such brevity and force the sublime thoughts of
the Word of God. jMen and women were not only
interested, but they were edified and built up in the
faith. Almost any other preaching, though eloquent,
seemed dull and pointless to those accustomed
to hang on the words of Saphir. People of all
churches sathered in to hear him. He was for vears
at Greenwich, stronger, physically, than ever after-

20G HIS STRENGTH OVEFxTAXED.

wards, and lie was greatly encouraged, not only by
the numbers attending his ministry, but by the
conversion of many, and the acknowledged building
up in the faith of vast numbers.

His fame had spread, and whenever he appeared
in London or elsewhere, he attracted large audi-
ences. But he had not been engaged in this work
above a few years when his strength began to
fail. He had been delicate from a child, always
of feeble frame, his thinking power too great
for his slender body. And now he was taxed
Sabbath after Sabbath, and week after week, with a
variety of services — all of which required thorough
preparation, for though he did not even use notes
in the pulpit, he could not speak extempore nor
vaguely. His speech was always the utterance of
intense thought. There are popular preachers and
speakers who can go on without strain, almost ad
infinitum, whose power consists in j^leasing the
ear and gratif3dng the fancy, wdiile there is little
thought. Such speakers can stand almost any
amount of work, for there is no great effort after all.
They might speak or preach a dozen times a week,
and be none the worse. But it is very different v/ith
the man who cannot speak without close thinking.
People often fail to recognize the difference, and
press such men on to illness and death. The
spirit in Saphir was willing. He was stirred up
to energy by the blessing resting on his work,
and thanked God greatly for it. But he could
not stand the strain, and he never fully regained

LEAVE OF ABSENCE FOH A YEAR. 207

the physical power which he had in those earlier
days.

During his latter years at Greenwich, after his
father's death, his mother and his sister Jolianna
resided near him. He hnd not seen his mother
for seventeen years previously, and it was a great
happiness to have them beside him. His sister
afterw^ards married the Rev. C. A. Schonberger,
Jewish missionary in Prague, and ]\Irs. Saphir lived
with her daughter till her death, in 1879. We
refer to these events in a later chapter.

About the years 18GS-9 Saphir's health began
seriously to suffer from the strain of continuous
work. His constitution was at all times delicate,
and he alw\ays required to take the utmost care.
But now there was evident necessity for rest and
change, and at length near the close of 1870
he was compelled to go away for a time. His
conoTeo'ation at Greenwich acted with o-reat kind-
ness, and waited for him for nearly a year, whilst
he remained in Switzerland, chiefly in the Enga-
dine. There he had an attack of gastric fever.
Writing to a friend whose brother was recovering
from a severe illness, at a later period, he refers
to this:—

''We deeply sympathize with you, my wife especially,
remembering her anxiety when I had gastric fever in the
Engadine, of which my remembrance was not so much of
anxiety, as of an indescribable feeling of an unearthly
existence, like a disembodied yet captive spirit."

After his recoverv from this illness he had much

208 DELIGHTFUL TIME IN THE ENGADINE.

enjoyment of liis stay in Switzerland, making many
friends, and frequently preaching. A lady friend
who met with them at this time writes : —

" We arrived at Pontresina to find the hotel full. As we
were hesitating what to do, a carriage drove up, in which
we were delighted to find Dr. and Mrs. Saphir, who had
come from Camphu for a day's picnic. They suggested
that we should join them at Camphu, and we drove there
at once, and were accommodated with two small rooms in
the same hotel. We spent three weeks delightfully together.
The nightly gatherings of friends and acquaintances in Dr.
Saphir's room are a pleasant memory of bright companion-
ship, animated conversation, and merry laughter. The Rev.
E. W. Moore, then of Brunswick Chapel, Berkeley Street,
and the Rev. G. R. Thornton of St. Barnabas, Kensington,
were among the visitors. Dr. Saphir had great influence
in the hotel, and much was made of him. He preached
before I came, and the church was crowded.''

He went to Switzerland in November 1870, and
returned in October 1871. On resuming his
ministry, he said, before beginning his sermon : —
" Dear friends, it is with the greatest gratitude
I trust that this morning I speak with you
again in the name of the Lord. Since last T
was with you I have experienced both the
severity and the goodness of the Lord ; above
all His goodness and loving-kindness. God only
knows what joy I have in speaking to you again
of Him who is the King, the Truth, and the
Life ; of the only salvation which in this life
brings peace to the conscience, and in the world
to come the immediate beholding of the glory
of God. During these months that I have been

RESIGNS HIS CHARGE AT GREENWICH 200

away, I have seen much of the goodness and
continual care of God, entering into the minutest
details of life, and making every detail an out-
come of His everlasting love with which He has
loved us. I have been delivered from serious
illness, and beyond my own expectation restored,
so that I am able to take part at least of the
work that is assigned to me here."

His stay at Greenwich, after his return, was not
very long. Though he was still as popular as ever,
and as much attached to his people, there were
various influences drawing him away. He himself
23erhaps felt the need of change, which is often new
life to a minister, but the chief cause was that, since
his fame had spread abroad, there had been a
strong desire, on the part of numbers of readers of
his works, that he should occupy a more central
position in London. Great influence was brought
to bear upon him in this direction, and to the very
deep regret of his congregation, and . with great
feeling of sadness, he determined to leave in the
summer of 1872.

Mr. Thomas Stone, who was one of the most
active members of the Greenwich confijreo'ation,
writes in regard to him : —

" Dr. Saphir was a simple, childlike man, of great intellect,
and a most lovable nature. One thing very noticeable in him
was his deep humility. He was full of Scripture ; and our
conversation when out on holiday rambling in the woods,
would usually turn upon the meaning of texts. Dr. Saphir
would say, I wonder what Paul meant when he wrote so and
so, — himself always taking the place of the inquirer, seeking

•210 niRD'S-EVK VIEW OF GREENWICH PERIOD.

to be taught, and never teaching. This was due to his
humility. He was a delightful companion."

He himself gives a bird's-eye view of this
Greenwich period : —

" I was called to St. Mark's English Presbyterian Church,
Greenwich, in 1861. I held this charge for over eleven years,
and my labours were accompanied by visible success. The
church had to be enlarged twice during my ministry, and the
number of worshippers increased from about a hundred to a
thousand. During two years this congregation collected £4000
for enlarging the building. A Sunday-school and classes for
young men and w^omen were also opened. The congregation
was very active, and, during the time I ministered there, I
had the satisfaction of collecting .£20,000 for Christ and
missionary enterprises. But the work was too much for my
feeble frame. I preached, on the average, four times a week,
and the rest of my time was fully occupied by numerous
pastoral visits, the instruction of intending communicants,
and by addressing public meetings."

Greenwich ever after occupied a chief place in
his affections, and often, in times of depression during
]iis latter days, did it gladden him to visit again
the scene of his former ministrv.

2n

CHAPTER XIX.

BEGINNING OF MINISTRY IN WEST LONDON.

Purchase for him of a large Church at Notting Hill — Money
obtained easily — Church at once filled — Members of all
Churches join — His Thursday Lectures attended by
numerous Clergy and other Persons of Influence — Liberal
Supporters of the Work — Great activity of the Congrega-
tion — Call to Scotland — Moody and Sankey's Visit to
London.

IT had been felt for years by a numlier of Saphir's
admirers that he ought to be in West London.
His books, especially Christ and the Scriptures^
had brought him into contact with many who
recognized him as one of the ablest expositors
and most powerful preachers of the day. A move-
ment w^as therefore made to get him to the west of
London. A large church, which had recently been
built on speculation in Kensington Park Eoad,
Notting Hill, had come into the market. Many
persons in the neighbourhood were prepared, it was
known from a previous movement, to join any
congregation of which Saphir might become
minister. Mr. James E. Mathieson took up the
matter with his usual energ;y and zeal. He had to

212 BEGINS WEST LONDON MINISTRY.

raise nearly £10,000. He personally visited many,
and was astonished at the heartiness with which
the appeal was responded to. Many others took
an active part in collecting, and soon the money
was raised.

Saphirs ministry was welcomed from the be-
oinning by people of all churches, especially by
earnest Christians. He began his work in the
autumn of 1872, with services in the Ladbroke
Hal], as the building which had been purchased
had to undergo extensive alterations. When the
church was opened in March 1873, it was soon
filled to overflowinoj — thous^h it held above 1000.
Members of the Church of Endand, CouOTeo-ation-
alists, Baptists, Plymouth Brethren, and others, as
well as Presbyterians, crowded together to hear this
son of Israel expound the Word of God.

It is rumoured that about this time Saphir was
sounded indirectly as to becoming one of the Court
Chaplains of the venerable Emperor of Germany.

One who was long associated with Dr. Saphir,
l)oth at Greenwich and Notting Hill, writes thus
in regard to the early Notting Hill period : —

"When first Dr. Saphir came to Xotting Hill, his church
was soon thronged with people drawn thither by his ministry
from all sorts of churches and chapels. Sunday after Sunday
every seat was filled, and the interest of his hearers never
abated, however long the discourse.

" When he began his Thursday morning lectures, the con-
gregations were also large and appreciative, and they were
steadily maintained, as long as his health permitted him to
continue them. The lectures on the Gospel of John (not yet

LETTER ON THE NOTTING HILL PERIOD. 213

published) were especially beautiful, and the remembrance of
those many happy mornings will long remain. One of Dr.
Saphir's chief characteristics was his intense simplicity. His
language, always good and fluent, was generally pure Saxon,
and this made his addresses to children so attractive and
interesting. He was peculiarly fond of children, and shone
most perhaps in his children's services — when some beautiful
Bible story was filled with life and interest, and eternal
realities were impressed on their young minds.

"He was also very full of fun and humoui-, and greatly
enjoyed an amusing story or a good joke, — and many droll
things he would say wdth an archness that was quite his own.
In almost all his letters to me when absent from home, there
are most droll allusions to things and people, which those who
knew him less would have scarcely guessed him capable of
M'riting ! But for sacred and Divine things he had the most
intense reverence, and anything that savoured of flippancy or
undue familiarity was to him most repugnant.

"Almost the last time I saw him we were talking of the
readiness of Christians to be attracted and distracted by
sensational methods of w^ork, and meetings, which he w^as
greatly deploring, when he suddenly looked up and said,
' Well, what are we all coming to, we Christians ? ' I said,
* I cannot tell ! ' ' Oh ! ' he replied w^ith his drollest expression,
' blue ribbon and a tambourine ! that is English Chi-istianity.'

"But one's memory lingers most over his looiiderful ser-
mons, that were such unfoldings of the things of God ; the
inexhaustible mine of wealth he found in a single text. I
remember six consecutive sermons on the verse, * Unto Him
that loved us,' &c., and each one seemed fuller than the pre-
ceding one, of the person and works of Christ, and the glory
of the Redeemer. Dr. Saphir had, as a Christian Israelite, a
grasp of Scripture, and of the purposes and mind of God
revealed therein, quite different to an ordinary Gentile mind.
To him the Lord's Incarnation and Crucifixion were such a
revelation of God, as we can hardly understand, who have been
told the wonderful facts from our infancy. He often wondered
at people's questions about faith, and whether or not they had
the right kind, or the right amount; whereas, the One in

2U LETTER TO LADY KINLOGH ON

whom to believe, was to him the only necessity for the soul —
all else was easy and simple. Nothing, I think, distressed or
depressed him so much as his hearers failing to be instructed,
or even interested in his sermons, or their seizing on some
minute point, carping at it, and criticizing something utterly
unimportant. Every sermon was to him a living organism,
with its proper parts and proportions ; and to pull it to pieces
was to destroy its symmetry and beauty, and to strip it of all
its meaning.

" With what joy he always welcomed the Lord's Day, and
rejoiced especially in the remembrance of His death in the
Lord's Supper ! Some of Dr. Saphir's most heart-stirring and
touching addresses were those delivered on Communion Sun-
days ; and the Hoj)e of the Lord's return was one of his most
soul-refreshing themes. But I must not enlarge on the many
topics such memories recall.

"I cannot convey the impression his wonderful expositions
of Scripture have left on my own heart and mind ; I, amongst
others, will ever have to thank God for his ministry, while we
deeply deplore his loss."

Ill letters to Lady Kiiilocli, be thus describes the
progress at Nottiiig Hill, after he had been a year
or two settled there : —

" We have been busy, and there has been the usual variety
of bright and gloomy, which must be in every life, and
perhaps more so in a minister's. But I think we have more
room foi' thankfulness and hope than in any previous years.

" We have both been much better this winter, and I have
been without an assistant, and preaching three times a week.
The church is progressing well, and I am beginning to feel
settled. The Scotch call ^ was very unintelligible to English
people, who think every little congregation a complete little
kingdom. I should have liked Edinburgh for many reasons.
But it was not to be.

^ From St. Luke's Eree Church, Edinburgh, to be colleague

to Dr. Moody Stewart.

HIS PROGRESS AT NOTTING HILL. 215

"Have you seen my Hebrews? I am now going to take a
long rest from publishing : though I am often asked to
publish my lectures on the Gospel of John. But it is too
laborious, and I have too many books out. There is so
little time for reading. How wonderfully the Pearsall Smith
movement collapsed ! We need a time of repose in the
churches, for quiet meditation and study of the dear, simple,
and wholesome Scriptures. How safe and peaceful it is
to listen to the voice of the Good Shepherd in His Word !
I have been very much living the last few weeks on that
passage, John xiv. 22, 23 : ' We are not of the world,
even as Christ is not of the world.' It is not a self-made
separation, but of God, and by the cross of Christ and the
Spirit of God in us. Oar fears and our knowledge and our
whole life have a lieavenly origin and character, and the
end wall be to be glorified together with Christ. If we get
thoroughly and deeply into these most blessed truths, w^e
shall have wisdom and strength for all the various circum-
stances of life. I sometimes feel that I have a very easy
path in many respects, that is Avitli regard to the world.
I am very glad of human beings, but not of society, and I
would have made a very good monk (that is with Sara).
Also my work, as I view it, does not oblige me to go outside
it. But I can understand to some extent the difficulties of
others. Yet I think the path will be made clear to all,
who are anxious to hold fast the most imjDortant, heavenly,
end of the cord. I fear these remarks are not definite.
Enough that it would be too long a subject to write upon.

" We are going to have our annual meeting in a fortnight,
and start clear of all debts. About £12,000 have been raised
in three years. We have some very dear people. Our
Thursdays are very largely attended, and there are always
some encouraging cases. The only thing I don't like is the
amount of business. The heterogeneous character of the
congregation is perhaps an advantage. I am less ' chm'chy '
every day ; but could not be cramped by the Darby standard.
But it must be very pleasant when circumstances justify
your joining a small circle of devoted and simple Christians.

"... We had a charming visit from dear Mr. Stevensoi-

21 G LETTERS OF SYMPATHY

of Dublin. He is like his book — praying and working, and the
best specimen going. I am blessed with many good friends."

He writes again to the same lady : —

"I trust that long before this you have been freed from
all anxiety about your brother's recovery, and that Sir K.
is regaining strength. We sympathized deeply with you.
What a winter of trouble this has been ! We have seen
so much that is sad, in our immediate circle here. Dear
Mr. Wingate lost his eldest daughter under very painful
circumstances, though the best of all consolations is his, for
she died in the faith. ... I hope your health and strength
continue good, and I often pray that you may have much
inward peace, and that the Lord may remove all that causes
you anxiety. And yet, as the Germans say, das Hebe Kreuz,
the dear cross. No doubt our afflictions and trials are signs
that God has not forgotten us, but is educating us in
Fatherly love (Heb. xii.). I have felt of late years constantly
drawn to those passages of Scripture which teach the mystery
of our fellowship with Christ in suffering, or rather fellowship
of His suft'erings, and sometimes hope that I am beginning
really to rejoice in Christ, though I am often ashamed at
being so depressed and feeling so disappointed. The return
of the Lord Jesus, and our being glorified together with Him
(if so be that we suffer with Him), this true and lively hope
seems to me like a star, which is not seen in the garish light
of prosperity and a smooth course, but only in the stillness
of sorrow, or at least of a chastened, crucified condition. I
think this is one reason why the Church lost this hope, after
the first ages of martyrdom, and why now-a-days it so often
degenerates into a mere sentimental speculation, — a pious
Zeltvertreih.

" We hear of scarcely anything else just now but IMoody
and Sankey. There seems indeed a wonderful amount of
interest and earnestness in their meetings. I have not yet
been able to go. My dear friends, Mr. Stone and Mr.
Mathieson, are the chief promoters of the movement.

"I have preached lately only once on Sunday, and also
on Thursday. The church has suffered from my not being

TO LADY KINLOCH. I'lr

there on Sunday evenings ; but still it has made good progress.
1 cannot reconcile myself with the idea ot" an assistant, but
i fear it is necessary. It makes mo feel very old and
useless."

Ill II letter to the same, written alicr liur serious
illness, he says : —

" We felt very sad and anxious whun your kind nolo told
us how ill you had been, and especially how much surrovv-
you had come through. We trust you will bOon Ije better ;
but do dismiss all sad thoughts, and wait (juietly, and after
these clouds God will send again sunshine. These trials are
very hard to bear for anxious and affectionate hearts. But
we possess the sympathy of One who passed through every
phase of sorrow, and who felt deeply wounded in His spirit
by every kind of sad experience among men. From Him
we can not only learn, but obtain grace, to commit all things
into the hands of our faithful Father, and to keep the heart
meek and in the attitude of forbearing and forgiving love.
God will guide and God will justify those who trust in Him
and walk uprightly. Sooner or later He brings it to light,
and makes all acknowledge it. I trust and pray that He
may quiet and comfort your heart and bear you up, renewing
your strength according to that dear promise (Isaiah xl. 31).

" I have been dwelling much upon the humanity and
sympathy of Christ (in connection with Matt. iv. and the
Epistle to the Hebrews). How comforting it is for us to
remember that the Saviour had true and real difficulties,
sorrows, and struggles ; that He also lived by faith ; that
His tears and prayers were the expression of real grief,
weakness, and dependence ! Thus is He now as the High
Priest who is touched with the feeling of our infirmity."

In a letter to another friend, he speaks of a visit
to Dublin : —

''I spoke last Sunday evening to Mr. Stevenson's people,
He is such a dear man, and more dear to me each time I

r

218 .4 PlW^PEROUi^ TIME.

«ee him. We are delighted with the youug people here ;
and it is a great pleasure to renew friendships."

He writes to the same friend on the hist day of
the year : —

*' We are making good progress, though nothing brilliant.
Last Sunday we had another children's service. The church
was crowded in every -^iivi, nearly all children. It was a
very fine sight. The children behaved beautifully. We had
another Jewish bajDtism. I am sorry to say the first Jew
who was influenced by Moody has relapsed into unbelief.
We are very much grieved, and must continue praying for
his restoration and conversion. 1 fear there is much super-
ticial work at meetings, and too great hurry to get people
to say they have peace; also comforting people who have
no sorrow or burden."

Tlie congregation, as it does to this day, con-
tained a large pro^^ortion of active workers, and
its influence was soon felt among the poor and
neglected in the neighbourhood. Dr. Saphir was
greatly encouraged, but still it Avas evident from
the beginning that he had not the physical strength
of his earlier Greenwich ])eriod, and that he was
not equal to the unremitting labour which many
of his friends, in their admiration and zeal, expected
from him.

•Jl9

CHAPTER XX.

LECTUKES OX THE HEBREWS AND THE DIVINITY
OF CHRIST.

Majestic Style of the Epistle — Its Central Idea — The Glory
of the IS'evv Covenant — Christ and Moses — The High-
Priesthood of Christ — Alleged Priesthood of the Clergy —
Pauline Authorship — Lecture on the Divinity of Christ —
Jewish Difficulties — Personal Testimony.

WE have referred to the Thursday morniug
Lectures on Hebrews, delivered in the
winters of 1873-74 and 1874-75, which were
attended by numbers of clergymen, professional
men, and other persons of influence. This was the
greatest triumph of his career. In these lectures
he traced out with great power, and often origin-
ality, the close connection of the Old and the New
Testament dispensations. We think it right, there-
fore, as illustrating his method of thinking and
teaching, to give a rapid glance at the main
positions.

" We arc," he says in the introduction, "attracted
and riveted by the majestic and Sabbatic style
of this Epistle. Nowhere in the New Testament

220 LECTURES UN THE HEBREWS.

writings do we meet language of such euphony
and rhythm. A pecuHar solemnity and anticipation
of eternity breathes in these pages. The glow
and flow of language, the stateliness and fullness
of diction, are but an external manifestation of
the marvellous depth and glory of spiritual truth
into which the apostolic author is eager to lead
his brethren. The Epistle reminds us, in tliis
respect, of the latter portion of the prophet Isaiah
— a suggestion, says Dr. Saphir in a note, made by
Delitzsch, — in which, out of the abundance of an
enraptured heart, flows such a mighty and beau-
tiful stream of consoling revelations. In both
Scriptures we behold the glory which dwelleth in
Immanuel's land ; we breathe the Sabbatic air of
Messiah's perfect peace. Both possess the same
massiveness ; both describe things which are real
and substantial, the beauty and strength of which
is eternal ; in both is the same intensity of love,
and the same comprehensiveness of vision."

" The central idea of the Epistle is the glory of
the New Covenant, contrasted with and excelling
the glory of the old dispensation ; and while this
idea is developed in a systematic manner, the aim
of the writer throughout is eminently and directly
practical. Everywhere his object is exhortation.
He never loses sight of the dangers and wants of
his brethren. The application to conscience and
life is never forgotten. It is rather a sermon than
an exposition. Thus the writer himself describes

THE FIRST FOUR VERSES. 221

the aim of his letter, and thus the Apostle Peter,
writing to the same Hebrew Christians, refers to
our book when he says, ' iVnd account that the
long-suffering of our Lord is salvation ; even as our
beloved brother Paul also, according to the wisdom
given unto him, hath written unto you; "

At the close of the series he has a chapter
strongly, and we think almost conclusively, deciding
for the Pauline authorship of the Epistle.

In his first Lecture he considers that the first
four verses contain as it were an epitome of the
whole Epistle. '' Beautiful is the night, in which
the moon and the stars of prophecy and types are
shining ; but when the sun rises, then we forget
the hours of watchful expectancy, and in the calm
and joyous light of day there is revealed to us the
reality and substance of the eternal and heavenly
sanctuary.*' " The Father is the Author of revela-
tion in both (Old Testament and New). The
Messiah is the substance and centre of the revela-
tion in both. The glory of God's Name in a people
brought nigh unto Him to love Him and to worship
Him, is the end in the revelation in both. Luther
compares them to the men carrying the branch
with the cluster of grapes. They were both bearing
the same precious fruit ; but one of them saw it not.
The other saw both the fruit and the man who was
helping him. Both Old and New Testaments are
of God ; the New Testament, as the Church-father
Augustine said, is enfolded in the Old, and the Old

222 CIIIUST THE LORD OF ALL.

Testament is enfolded in the New. ' In vetere
Testamento Novum latet, in Novo vetus patet.' "
Thus contrasting the messenger of the Old Testa-
ment with the Messenger of the New, he shows
what is implied in the description of the latter.
" It is of the Incarnate Son of God that the Apostle
speaks ; and showing unto us His glory, he leads
us, in the first place, to the end of all history ; He
is appointed the Heir of all things : (2) to the
beginning of all history ; in Him God made the
ages : (3) before all history ; He is the brightness
of His glory, and the express image of His person :
(4) throughout all history ; He upholdeth all things
by the word of Plis power." '' Christ is Lord of all.
The whole universe centres in Him. A star appears
at the time of Messiah's advent. The sun loses his
splendour when Jesus Christ dies upon the cross.
There shall be ag^ain wonders and si mis in the
heavens when the Son of man shall come in power.
In the material world we know that there have
been many and great cycles of development. And
both science and revelation lead us to look forward
to a new earth. It is the Lord Jesus who shall
make all things new, and all developments are
borne up and moved by the word of His power.
Oh ! I know that the general conception that the
world has of Jesus is, that He is Lord of a spiritual
realm, of thought and sentiment. Bishop and Head
of ministers and pastors for edifying souls ! But
the world does not know that He is moving all
things by the word of His power ; that all politics,

ABOVE THE ANGELS.

all statesmanship, all history, all physics, all arts,
all sciences, everything that is — all that has sub-
stance, truth, beauty, all things apart from the
cancer of sin which has attached itself to it, consist
by Jesus the Son of God." " Sin has brought PTim
down from heaven. Our defilement has drawn
Him horn the height of His glory. Oh, what an
expression ! — what a climax ! ' Who, being the
brightness of His glory, and the express image of
His person, and upholding all things by the word
of His power, when He had by Himself jp?t7;^6c/ oiiv

He considers the might of the angels, and yet
Jesus' infinite exaltation above them. " Angels are
connected not merely with salvation and with the
spiritual kingdom of God, but with all the kingdom
of God, with all physical phenomena. There was
an earthquake at His resurrection. Why ? Because
angels had rolled away the stone. The Pool of
Siloam had miraculous power, *for an angel came
down at certain seasons and troubled the water,'
and endowed it with healing power. The angels
carry on every development in nature. God does
not move and rule the world merely by laws and
principles, by unconscious and inanimate powers,
but by living beings full of light and love. His
angels are like flames of fire ; they have charge
over the winds, and the earth, and the trees, and
the sea. Through the angels He carries on the
oovernment of the world, And these angels whom

224 CHRIST AND MOSES.

God has made so glorious, who excel in strength,
hearken to the voice of His commandment, and
obey Him, while they in worship continually behold
the countenance of the Father. . . . Now, glorious
as the angels are, they are in subjection to Jesus as
man ; for in His human nature God has enthroned
Him above all things. Their relation to Jesus
fixes also their relation to us. In a great house
there may be many servants who are honoured,
trusted, and lieloved ; ])ut the position of the little
child who is the heir is different, though as yet he
is inferior in knowledge, strength, and attainments."

In the second section of the Epistle, extending
from the beginning of the third chapter to the
fourteenth verse of the fourth chapter, Christ the
Lord is contrasted with Moses the servant. In
many respects Moses was a type of Jesus. Both
were threatened as infants by cruel rulers, and both
were marvellously sheltered by the living God.
Moses was the mediator, and spoke with God face
to face. He revealed the covenant of God with
Israel. But Jesus was the builder of the house ;
the preparer even of Moses for his mission and
work.

The third section of the Epistle, extending from
the fifth chapter to the thirty-ninth verse of the
tenth chapter, sets forth the Lord Jesus Christ, the
High Priest of the everlasting covenant, greater
than the Aaronic priesthood. We note one or two

WHO ABE THOSE WHO "FALL AWAY?" 225

passages of special interest. Speaking of the
verses which have often caused much difficulty and
anxiety, — " It is impossible for those who were once
enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift,
and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, and
have tasted the good Word of Grod, and the powers
of the world to come, if they shall fall away, to
renew them again to repentance," — he says in a
note: — ''This warning does not refer to isolated
sins, but to a protracted and habitual condition of
mind, and to neglect and disbelief of truths once
recognized and confessed ; and it places before us the
result of a series of unfaithful and wilful rejections
of spiritual influences and privileges. Many humble
and timid Christians have misunderstood the whole
scope and purport of this passage. He who judges
himself is not judged. The man who fears always
is safe, because he trusts in the living God and
Saviour. But, as we know from Scripture, and,
alas ! also from experience, there are some who
appear to the Church to be zealous and true
Christians, and who yet have not received the
Word in a good heart, and by and by fall away.
Such men are in a most deplorable condition.
Their antipathy to truths once known and professed
is very great, and different from the apathy of the
worldly ; theirs is a bitter and subtle hostility.
Yet even their case should not be received by us
as hopeless ; but we should pray for them, that
God may give unto them true repentance and
living faith. The wilful and conscious rejection of

■22G ALLEGED miESTIIOOD OF THE CLEROY.

the testimony of the Holy Ghost is another subject,
and not spoken of in this passage." " The Apostle
dealt only with appearances and impulses, and not
the spiritual life, and does not teach the possibility
of falling away from the faith."

In commenting on the tenth chapter, he refers to
the alleged priesthood of the clergy and priestly cere-
monies. " While the temple stood, Jesus and the
Apostles honoured the temple. The Lord said unto
the leper, ' Show thyself unto the priest.' He and
His Apostles went daily into the temple. Aftei"
His resurrection, and while the gospel was being
preached to Israel, the temple services and ordin-
ances may have been blessed to souls, as images
and prophecies of the heavenly realities. But any
imitation of the Levitical dispensation in the present
day must needs be contrary to God's mind, and
obscure the clear revelation in Christ Jesus. The
expression ' priest,' in the sense of Upsdg^ applied to
a Christian minister, can in no wise be defended.
The expression ' consecration,' as applied to build-
ings, ought also to be given up, and with the
expression every remnant of the old leaven, which
attaches some kind of sanctity to any place. Sacred
places there are none now. We never read of the
Apostolic Christians going to Bethlehem, when^
Jesus was born ; or to Golgotha, where He died ;
or to the garden, where He rose ; or the ]\Iount
of Olives, where He ascended ; or to the temple
chamber in which the Pentecostal oift was received.

' Where two or three are gathered together ' — there,
because and wher/ they are gathered together in
the Name of Jesus ; wherever we worship in spirit
and truth, there and then we may say. How dread-
ful is this place ! This view does not in the least
affect the necessity and desirability of having
spacious, suitable, and attractive buildings set apart
for the meeting of God's people, and the preaching
of the gospel. Here is a proper field for Christian
liberality, and also for architectural skill. How
much inclined are men to welcome everything
which does not reveal to them their true condition,
and bring them into the very presence of God !
Priesthood, vestments, consecrated buildings, sym-
bols, and observances, all place Christ at a great
distance, and cover the true sinful and guilty state
of the heart, wdiich has not been brought nigh by
the Blood of Christ."

We have noticed the discussion of the Pauline
authorship of the Hebrews. We may again refer
to it. In summing up the arguments, he notes that
the only ancient tradition points to the Apostle
Paul as the writer. The presumption is strongly
in favour of the Apostle when we remember his
great love to Israel, his profound knowledge of the
Scriptures, his power of adaptation to be a Jew to
Jews. Then another likely author has been sug-
gested — Appllos ; and Luke has been also suggested.
But there is a fervour and force, a sustained energy
both of thought and feeling in the Epistle, which

228 PAULINE AUTHORSHIP OF EPISTLE.

we do not find anywhere but in the writings of
Paul. Then there are the earnest and affectionate
exhortations, with whicli he interrupts his argument,
as if he could not restrain his yearning and anxious
love. There are many expressions peculiar to Paul,
and the view of Christ — the very opening verses
on the glory of the Son, for instance — bears a
most striking resemblance to many passages in the
Pauline Epistles. If we look at the concluding
chapter, the personal messages and requests can only
be attributed to Paul. Stier asked justly: Who
but Paul could write thus to Jewish Christians,
without giving his name, and yet pre-supposing
both their acquaintance and brotherly relation, so
as to ask their intercession, and also some suspicion
and hesitation, against which he thinks it necessary
to appeal to his conscience ? Only Paul could write
thus about " brother Timothy " as his companion
and assistant. Though the question is still much
disputed, the internal arguments seem to be over-
whelming in favour of the authorship of Paul,
which is in accordance with the chief historic
testimony.

There is one lecture, delivered at this period, in
1874, which we think must be noticed, as it contains
much that is original and powerful, on the all-
important subject of our Lord's Divinity. It was
the first of a series of four, given by different
lecturers, to the students of the English Presbyterian
College. Asa Jew, Dr. Saphir throws himself into

THE DIVINITY OF CHRIST. 22^

the very period and circumstances of his fathers at
the advent of Christ, and shows how difficult it
would have been to declare such a doctrine, how
impossible to suggest it, except revealed from
heaven — and yet it was the centre of all apostolic
teaching.

x4t no time, he says, could it have been more
difficult to declare the doctrine of the Divinity of
our Lord Jesus Christ, than at the time wdien it was
proclaimed with greatest earnestness and intensity
in the days of the Apostles. Think of the Jews to
whom they preached that Jesus is God. Eemember
that of all the commandments which God Himself
gave unto His people upon Mount Sinai, and which
He afterwards con finned by the mouth of His
prophets, there was none that was so distinct and
clear and emphatic as that second commandment.
" But to whom will ye liken Me 1 My glory will I
not give to another," were the frequent exclamations
of God by the mouth of the prophets. How
strange then must it have appeared, first unto the
Jews, to hear Peter and Paul, and all the Apostles
who were their brethren according to the flesh,
saying that Jesus of Nazareth w^as Jehovah, Lord ;
that unto Him was given all power in heaven and on
earth ; that every knee must bow before Him, and
that every tongue must confess that He is above
all, Lord ; that He is God blessed for ever.

The Apostles always spoke of Jesus as Ku^^o^,
w hicli was quite equivalent to Jehovah in the Old

230 JEWISH DIFFICULTIES AS TO DOCTRINE,

Testament. Only think of such applications of Old
Testament words to Jesus as we find in Hebrews
i. 1 : "Thy throne, God, is for ever and ever;
a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of Thy
kingdom." And : '' Thou, Lord, in the beginning,
hast laid the foundations of the earth, and the
heavens are the work of Thy hands." Then with
regard to the idolaters who worshipped many gods,
and spoke of many '' sons of God," how easily
might the apostolic declaration of the Father,
Son, and Holy Ghost, have been misunderstood
by them as Tritheism. Notice how with this
twofold difficulty besetting them, the Apostles
speak of the Divinity of the Lord Jesus so
constantly, so freely, so spontaneously ; notice
the perfect ease, consistency, and joyousness
with which this fundamental fact is constantly
alluded to, pre-supjjosed, announced. And as they
believed that Jesus was God, and that not although,
but because they were Jews, so they declared the
Divinity of Jesus as the only real remedy by wdiich
idolatry could be eradicated. For Jesus is the
image of the invisible God. He is the true life,
and eternal life. When we adore Him, we keep
ourselves from idols. Hence all are idolaters who
do not w^orship God in the face of Jesus Christ ; no
man cometh unto the Father but by Him.

The Evangelists and Apostles teach clearly the
real, true, and perfect humanity of the Lord Jesus.
. . . But when Scripture reminds of His humanit}',

THE DIVINITY AND HUMANITY. 231

it brings always before us His Divinity also. " He
look upon Him the form of a servant. But in taking-
upon Him the form of a servant He iiumblecl Him-
self." He learned obedience by the things that He
suffered ; but it is added, " though He were a
Son." The Apostle dwells upon His poverty ; but,
" though He was rich, yet, for your sakes He
Ijecame poor." He was the Sou of man; but in
this very expression is implied that He was much
more than man ; and this is also manifest from the
question, " Whom do men say that I, the Son of
man, am ? '

In the weakness and lowliness of His humanity,
we behold always His Divine majesty and glory.
True, He was born of the Virgin Mary, and like
any other babe depended on the love of His
mother, and upon the guardianship of Joseph, her
husband ; but a multitude of angels came down
from heaven, and declare, not that a babe, but that
Christ the Lord (Jehovah) is born ; and as all
nature is obedient unto the Word, the star directs
the wise men from the East to Bethlehem, and they
fall down and worship the child, and are not guilty
of idolatry, for the child is none other than " the
mighty God, the Prince of Peace." ^' The AVord
was made flesh."

True, He grew in stature and in wisdom, like
any other child ; and when He was twelve years
old. His parents took Him unto the feast in
Jerusalem. But the boy is God ; not that He
gradually develops into God ; but He who was

232 THE DIVINE IN HIS HUMAN ACTIONS.

God, and always must be God, became man, par-
taker of flesh and blood, in all things like unto us.
He says, " How is it that ye have sought Me ? Must
I not be in the things of My Father ? " making
a wonderful distinction between Himself and the
most devoted of God-fearing Israelites. . . .

As men we see Him in the ship, laying His head
upon the pillow, for He was tired and overcome
with sleep ; but He is God ; He arises and rebukes
the storm ; He is that Divine One of whom the
prophet had written in the Book of Proverbs, that
all the wind and waves are in His omnipotent
hand.

It is true He is man, and lives by faith, and
prayer unto God, and performs His very miracles
simply because He depends upon the Father ; but
He is God, for no creative being ever prayed unto
the Father as He prayed, "Father, I will;" and
no created angel ever was able to say, " My Father
worketh, and I also work ; " and no prophet or
angel was ever sent to show forth their oivn glory,
that men might believe in Him. ... On the Cross
He opens the kingdom of heaven to the penitent thief
in the words of Divine power and love : '^ Verily,
verily, I say unto thee, to-day slialt thou be with
Me in Paradise." Behold His Divinity in His
lowliness and humiliation ; from the manger of
Bethlehem to Golgotha, He is God.

The Lord Jesus, he notes, speaks throughout of
Himself as Jehovah, God manifest. Look at the

THE LORD OF MOSES AND THE PROPHETS. 233

position He takes respecting the Scriptures. '' Think
not," He says, "that I am come to destroy the law
and the prophets ; I am not come to destroy, but
to fulfil." Only fancy any human being uttering
such expressions, and that in the midst of the
Jewish people ! What man or angel could either
destroy or fulfil the law or the prophets ? " / am
come.'' That expression alone would convey to
the Jews that He was the Great Redeemer and
Deliverer. " Blessed is Ho that cometh in the
name of the Lord."

But He puts Himself as the Lord and Master
of Moses and the Prophets. The whole Scripture
was to be fulfilled in Him. Moses wrote of Him.
Is not the Scripture the Revelation of God ? Did
not Moses write of Jehovah ? Were not the proj)hets
sent to declare Jehovah ? What man or angel can
say, the Scriptures testify of him, centre in him,
and are fulfilled in him ? Who is this Lord of
Scripture unless it be Jehovah ?

He speaks of Himself as the Son of Abraham ;
but He says also, '' Before Abraham was, I am.'' He
speaks not as if it were His glory to be descended
from Abraham, but His words show that it was
Abraham's glory that Jesus was descended from
him, even as it was his joy to behold Christ's day.
He calls Himself the Son of David, but He asks,
" How is it then that David in the Spirit calls Him
Lord ? "

He shows how Jesus takes to Himself the pre-

Q

234 JESUIT ASSUMES DIVINE PREROGATIVES

rogatives of Jehovah, of forgiving sins ; of supply-
ing the living water ; of pouring out the Spirit or
baptizing with the Holy Ghost ; of being the Bride-
groom of the Church. There is also His command,
that He Himself is to be loved above all others,
father or mother, wife or child, as Jehovah claimed
in the Old Testament. If we give what He asks,
we give all that is demanded of God, and God will
not give His glory to another. He prepared to
offer Himself as a sacrifice for the sins of men,
most clearly foretelling it, and suffering as an
atoning Sacrifice. He is the Lamb of God, God
of God, the Son of the Father, clinging with perfect
faith unto God, and acknowledging the righteous-
ness and justice of His holy written law ; clinging
with perfect love to us, for whose salvation He had
come to die on the accursed tree.

Dr. Saphir concluded his lecture with this very
touching personal testimony : — Perhaps none of
you know from experience what it is to live without
the knowledge of the Incarnation ; what it is to
endeavour to realize the incomprehensible, infinite
God, without the light and comfort of the Mediator,
and how joyous and self-evidencing is the peaceful
brightness when Jesus is 'revealed as the Son of
God, declaring the Father. I was brought up in
my childhood in the synagogue, and was taught
that there was one God, infinite, incomprehensible,
holy Spirit ; high above us and omnipresent. Much
stress was laid on the unity and unicity of God,

.[ TOUCHING PERSONAL TESTIMONY. 235

But this bare, vague, and abstract Monotheism
leaves the mind in darkness, while the heart is
chilly and desolate. There was another and a
better current which then influenced me. It was
the national history, as recorded in the books of
Moses, the Psalms, and the Prophets, and com-
memorated in the festivals. There I was met
by no abstract idea of unicity, but by a loving
God, who appeared unto Abraham and spoke to
him ; who led Israel through the wilderness and
dwelt among them ; and after, when I thought of
the friendly, kind, concrete, and human way in
which the Lord God then appeared unto His
people and dwelt with them, I wondered why He
was not now with us, known, loved, and followed.

One day I was looking at some books, and the
title of one arrested my eye. It was Die Mensch-
tverdung Gottes — God becoming man. The thought
went through my mind like a flash of lightniug ;
it thrilled my soul with a most joyous solemnity.
" Oh," I said, '' this would be the most beautiful
thinfr, if God were to become man and visit us ! "
Not many years after I heard about Jesus, and
read the Gospels. I felt here the same presence,
the same loving, condescending, redeeming, and
sanctifying God, that appeared unto the Fathers.
I felt that here was Jehovah ; that all darkness
had disappeared, and that the grand but incon-
ceivable glory here shone upon us in the perfect,
peaceful, and holy countenance of the man Christ
Jesus. Peniel ! I have seen God face to face, and

23G PERSONAL TESTIMONY.

iny life is preserved. . . . To believe in Jesus, the
Sou of God, is not an abstract dogma, or a theo-
sopliic speculation, but a soul-experience, a new
heart-life. It is the mystery of godliness. May
the result of all we learn and experience on earth
]>e summed up in this : By God's spirit I believe
that Jesus is the Son of God, who loved me, and
ofave Himself for me.

237

CHAPTER XXI.

LETTERS OF HIS LATER LIFE.

Comfort ill Bereavement — The Church, what it is, and Baptism
— Princess Alice's Death — Church Order — Apostolic Suc-
cession — Faith without a Knowledge of the Spirit's Work
— The Fall and Redemption necessarily connected — The
Future Punishment Controversy — The Present State of
the Churches — Broad Churchism — "The Catholic Apostolic
Church" — Crucified with Christ — A Vicarious Atonement
— Schleiermacher — Separation from the World — The Lord's
Day — Perfectionism — A Free Gospel and Election — The
Connection of the Present and Future Lives — " The Higher
Life" — Dr. Keith's Last Days — German Translations of
the Bible — Influence of Trial.

WE now give a number of letters, many of them
on leading questions of religious interest.
They were chiefly written to a lady who, by her
position in society, came into contact with great
varieties of opinion, and who often wrote to Dr.
Saphir, to consult him, in perplexity. She does not
wish to give her name, but to note that they were
written to one "to whom his teaching was greatly
blessed." In placing them at our disposal, she
writes : —

" How gently and patiently he taught me for years, these
letters clearly show forth ! I went through so many mists,
and he seemed sent to pilot me through. T can never thank
God enough for this."

238 COMFORT IN BEREAVEMENT.

It has been impossible, in many cases, to ascertain
the precise dates, but almost all given in this
chapter were written during the later Notting Hill
period, a few of them perhaps afterwards. The
dates, however, when they deal with general ques-
tions are not so important. Dr. Saphir had a habit
of only putting the day of the month on his letters,
and not the year, and when the envelopes have not
been preserved, it is frequently impossible to
ascertain the year.

The first few letters given relate to the very
sudden death of a beloved mother. One is dated
May 26, 1878 :—

" It was only after the Morning Service that I heard of your
sad bereavement. Mr. Topping had heard of it, but was afraid
to tell me, as he feared it would upset me, as he knew I was
hardly able to preach this morning.

"I do not like to intrude on you in your great sorrow, but
I cannot refrain from expressing my deep sympathy with you
in your sudden grief, and my earnest hope that you and all
yours will be mercifully sustained and consoled in this deep
aflaiction. May the love of our Heavenly Father and the
sympathy of our great High Priest and Saviour be very near
and precious to you ! . . . You will have all needful grace
and strength, and the Lord will keep you and bless you."

Another letter, dated June 7, 1878, refers to the
same loss : —

'' You have been in our thoughts all this week, and we
trust that you have been upheld and comforted all these
solemn and sorrowful days. They also are included in the all
days in which Jesus has promised to be with us (Matt, xxviii.).
I was so glad Dean Stanley chose John xiv,, our Saviour's
words, these are so simple ; and when Ave need strong con-

THE SWEET OLD STOltr. L>3t>

solation we long for the greatest simplicity. 'My Father's
House ' — ' I go to prepare a place for you ' — ' I will come
again.' If we can hear this, and in the loving Voice of our
Lord, our hearts will cease being troubled.

" You must not wonder, if after the excitement and activity
of the last days you will feel now, more than you have yet
done, the loss, and realize the blank. The Christian does not
attempt to force himself into strength, but leans with his
weakness and in his sorrow on the compassionate Lord, who
can perfectly sympathize with us. To His grace I commend
you. His Spirit will sanctify and bless this sad experience
to you, and through it lead you to greater strength and
insight.

" Your kind and encoui'aging words were very precious to
us. I often feel discouraged at not seeing more results of my
w^ork ; but I believe I am not sufficiently aware how little I
deserve to be of any use, and instead of being discontented,
I ought to be thankful. I was so glad my friend Herschell
took up the subject of the Second Advent. He is a very godly
man, and takes his theology straight from the Bible and
experience. This is no doubt the best way. Do you not feel
in some men's teaching an absence of the Cistern's taste and
of the directness of a Fountain 1 I often wish I could forget
more all the present day controversies. The very way the
questions are put is already a departure from the simplicity of
the gospel. But we must adhere to the sweet old story.

"... We came out to Richmond for a few days. I feel
a little better, but the sense of utter inability to work has not
quite left me. It is very refreshing to ,see the trees, and to
feel there is something outside, and may I say above, London !
" I have not been able to read the Assembly's discussions.
They seem to have been on the whole very calm and kindly.
I am afraid my friend Dr. MacLeod takes too mundane a
view of the 'parish.' How difficult it would be to explain
to the Apostle Paul what is meant by the ' parish,' in the sense
in which the modern Scotch ministers use it. But I must not
broach my radical views. . . I am very sorry that you will
be away so long. I never like a member of my church
very much, but they either go a\\ay or become Darbyite.*'

2W Till!: CHURCH—AND BAPTISM.

ill another leiler he says : —

"I must write a line to tell you how deeply aud keenly
1 felt yesterday in sympathy with all bereaved ones. Just
before the service, I got a letter announcing the sudden death
of my wife's life-long friend, Judge Lawson's sister-in-law.
1 did not tell her, as she wished to go to church, and I knew
it w^ould upset her.

"This has been a very sad year. But we must remember,
that the same Love, which suns the bright year, suns also the
year of evil."

In another letter he says : —

" I su2:)pose you have seen a little volume of gems from the
late Dr. Ker's note-book. It seemed to me very good and
beautiful."

THE CM UKUH, WHAT \T IS, AND BAPTISM.

in a letter written on December 23, 1878, he
refers to the teaching of Scripture as to the Church
and Baptism, regarding whicli his corresjjondent
had written to him : —

"First, Scripture. I wish you would put aside the (juestiou
of the * Church ' and of * Baptism.' If you read (without com-
ment) the Acts, the Pastoral Epistles, aud the First Epistle to
the Corinthians, you will see how God quietly guided the
Apostles to make appointments as necessity arose, and accord-
ing to the synagogue form, and how the ministry {cmkovlo),
for the benefit of the Church in teaching, ruling, feeding, must
always virtually be the same. The outward order is good ;
the call is from God, and the power by the Spirit. The laying
on of hands and prayer, doubtless a real blessing, but not by
virtue of any official succession, or in order to give the ' order '
' authority.' Not even the Apostles sought to enforce authority,
but commended themselves and the truth to the conscience.
The Lord says to Peter, 'Feed My sheep.' But He does not
say to the sheep, ' Obey Peter.' When we come in the Name

PRINCESS ALICE'S DEATH. L>41

of Christ as His ambassadors, the Lord inclines the hearts
to receive us.

"^ Second, as to ' Church.' The Church is an abstraction.
All saints that ever lived, and still live, are the Church. The
Church is yet in the future, at Christ's coming. Now there
are only churches. As for the assumption that Komanists,
Anglicans, and Greeks are the only thiee Churches, it has no
►Scriptural foundation whatever. Where there is an organized
brotherhood of Believers we recognize a Church. This includes
Individualists, like the Independents, and corporate churches,
like the Methodists, Presbyterians, Anglicans. Of course
some are more scriptural and fully developed than others.
State churches contain churches, but are not churches. But
this last sentence would require explanation. It was held by
Luther, and I think him a host in himself.

" Third, Baptism. Do not trouble yourself what Baptism is
to those who do not believe. Rather look to what it is to the
Believer. Only you must not apply what is said in the New
Testament of Baptism directly to infants. For in the New
Testament the believers were baptized, and in Baptism were
fully brought into the Church, and possession of the Church-
Spirit. But all covenant blessings are sealed in Baptism to
believers, whether they were baptized as infants or otherwise.

" But now I must write no more theology. Let us dwell in
the great and clear truths, and may we be daily experiencing
the grace of Christ, which is sufficient for us I "

PKINCE8S Alice's death, &c.

'• We were all full of sorrow when the tidings of Princess
Alice's death came. It was very sad, and the coincidence of
the death in one sense deepened the sorrow. But it is delightful
to know that ' to die was gain.'

" I am very sad about dear Germany. So few believers ; and
the youDg poisoned systematically. No doubt the apostasy of
Christendom is advancing rapidly. Tliey deny both the Father
and the Son. We have much in this country to mourn over,
tliough, thank God, there is a stronger band of believers.

'• We had a splendid case of a young Ilabbi from Strasburg.

242 CHURCH ORDER.

He went to refute the missionary, but he admitted he had
never read the New Testament. He went home, read, and
was convinced at oyice. He has made considerable sacrifices.
I am greatly pleased with him. He is now studying theology
in Edinburgh.

" I have just received the Magyar translation of one of my
books. The Free Church missionaries are doing much for the
circulation of Scripture and books in Hungary, and among the
Slavonians."

CHURCH ORDER.

Writing on Monday, July 14, 1879, be says,
speaking of Church Order : —

" I cannot go a step higher than I did yesterday morning.
It is my maximum ! — and pitched to the highest to counter-
balance the Plymouthists. The apostolic succession theory, as
held by Komanists and Anglicans, I discard, except that I
believe (in Providence) there has been an uninterrupted series
of ordained Presbyters. Of course the ordained ones can
ordain, and even Episcopal ordination is by the Bishop and
Presbyters. The Church of Rome theory is quite mechanical,
and contrary to the New Testament, and the Anglican theory
is very little better. No ! Presbyters ordain : if they chose to
have bishops as superintendents I have no objection. But as
you say, it is a long subject. Both Irvingism and Anglicanism
I do hope you will utterly and radically give up. The former,
I fear, is a delusion of the subtle adversary, and the latter
does not keep strictly to Scripture.

" Read in the Confession of Faith Directory about ministers.
It is very good. The Elders of the present day are somewhat
ill-defined creatures. If new exigencies demand new ofiicers,
I hold we have the highest right to ordain men for them, by
laying on of hands."

FAITH WITHOUT A KNOWLEDGE OF THE SPIRIt's
WORK.

Writing on the passage in Acts xix. where those

THE FALL AND REDEMPTION. 243

who had been baptized by John are stated to have
been baptized into Christ, after they had expressed
faith in Him, he says : —

"The passage in Acts xix. does not present the difficulty
you find in it. The disciples mentioned there had not been fully
instructed, and had only received the preparatory baptism of
John. But we may have true faith, given by God's Spirit,
without a knowledge of the Spirit's work. This we see in
children ; and by most Christians the doctrine of the Spirit is
understood at a much later stage. They first simply trust in
Christ, without being conscious that this is the work of the
Holy Ghost in them. It is very fortunate that, as Goethe
says, we can enjoy a good house without being architects or
understanding the principles of architecture. It seems that
in the apostolic age certain spiritual gifts, manifestations, and
powers followed hajjtism, which, in the case of adult believers, I
can Cjuite understand. But, as I think I once told you, the
application to infant baptism of what is stated in the Epistles
of believers' baptism is most unwarranted."

THE FALL AND REDEMPTION NECESSARILY
CONNECTED.

In another letter, speaking of the Fall, he says : —

" I must answer your questions about Adam. It is strange
that the Bible is not taken up as a whole, one great organized
structure, God-given, and each part connected with the rest.
For this reason people think they can cut off a doctrine, a
narrative, a miracle, as you cut oif a piece of cloth, without
hurting the rest. Now the whole Bible and Christianity fall
to pieces without Genesis i. to iii. If there is no Adam, root
and representative of the whole race, there is no Christ :
Bomans v. and 1 Corinthians xv. fall at once. The unity of
the human race in the One Blood (Acts xvii. 26) is not merely
a fact, but a necessary fact, as the redemption through Christ
is its great counterpart. But our Lord Himself believed
Genesis i. to iii. literally, as His frequent references shoNV.

244 THE FUTURE PUNISHMENT CONTROVERSY.

*•' Besides, what is it an allegory of ? If there was no first
man, created by God in His Image, what is symbolized by this
story? If there was, it is a narrative of a fact, and of the
most important and su])lime nature. How rational is this
narrative in all its detail — the counsel of the three, ' Let
us,' &c., showing the special glory of man ; the breath from
above, and the earth, showing man both spiritual and connected
with Nature, and all the other parts of this truly magnificent
record. The creation of Eve out of Adam is as true as it is
beautiful. (Eph. v.)

" I have just been interrupted by a sailor, wishing to become
a communicant. His account of his spiritual history was most
original. One expression specially struck me. He said — * Since
I gave my heart to God, He has become quite my idol.'

" There is not much going on here at present ; there is how-
ever some slight encouragement in the effects of the preaching,
which now and then appear. It is a work of faith, and how
thankful we ought to be that it is entrusted to us ! I have
been cheered by the way my Hungarian book, published by
the Tract Society, has been received in» Hungary. The Hun-
garian Protestant Church, I am grieved to say, is to a large
extent Rationalistic."

THE FUTURE PUNISHMENT CONTROVERSY.

In another letter he speaks of the future punish-
ment controversy, and then of the present state of
the Churches : —

" I quite agree with you about Dr. Campbell's ^ views on men
being reconciled. The clearest proof is 2 Cor. v. 19, 20. Mr.
White's book is the best on that side, and he is a thoroughly
good and Scripture-loving theologian. Still he does not con-
vince me, and his hypothesis has many difficulties. I do not
think the Bible statements, taken as a whole, can be made to
mean anything else but what the whole Church has taught
— an awful alternative of life or death, — and death not in the
sense of non-existence. I suppose you know Mr. White was
a, brother of the late L. N. E.

Camj^bell, formerly of How.

BROAD CHURCHISM. 245

PRESENT STATE OF THE CHURCHES.

" What you say about * the Church ' I feel constantly and
very painfully. The Church in a sense is also a failure, as
Israel was. The apostolic condition altered even during the
Apostles' lifetime, and the attempt of catholicity and infalli-
bility ended in the Eoman apostasy. The various Protestant
Churches are one-sided, and do not possess the fullness of
teaching, worship, and life, which would satisfy us ; many of
them being besides mixed up with the world, not holding the
truth in purity. There is, I think, nothing else for us but to
be patient, to help our own community, and to ' testify.' If it
shall please the Lord to set up the Church in a truly apostolic
spirit and life, previous to His return, I think there will be
such evident tokens and such a heartfelt attraction, that the
children of God will feel no doubt and hesitation."

BROAD CHURCHISM — PERSONAL EXPERIENCES.

In the following letter he refers to Broad
Ohurehism and to his own experience of it : —

" I must write a word about heterodoxy. I am not much
afraid of its effect on you, because of the promise, ' They shall
be all taught of God. ' I know that you have an experimental
knowledge and conviction that Scripture is God's Word, and
that the Lord Jesus is the Righteousness, Peace, and Life of
all who trust in Him. Whatever difficulties, and doubts, and
temporary aberrations you may have to pass through, I feel
sure that the Holy Ghost will enlighten and confirm you, if
you look steadfastly to God through the revelation of Scrip-
ture, as it centres in Christ (1 John ii. 27). I passed for
several years through many doubts and phases, and was
exposed to very ' Broad ' and even Pantheistic influences, and
I remember that I was often irritated by severe and impatient
orthodox treatment. The reading of Scripture, and of Pascal's
Pensees, and the friendship of a few really good Christians
dispelled the mists. I have a great horror of the sweetish,
modified, and rationalized Christianity a la Dean Stanley, &c.,
although I know that excellent men have felt drawn into it.

246 ENCO URA GEMENT.

But I think they had still the quintessence of the old views
sustaining them. What we need is more spiritual power and
godliness.''

ENCOURAGEMENT.

Of a visit to Greenwich, he says : —

"I was greatly cheered within the last few weeks by finding
three of my old Greenwich Bible-class decided Christians, and
working in the Church. They are all under twenty. One wrote
me from Paris. She is under Miss Leigh, who is doing such
excellent work among the English residents. The other
called on me yesterday. She is only seventeen, and takes charge
of a creche, a Sunday-school of eighty, and evening classes,
in East Greenwich."

" THE CATHOLIC APOSTOLIC CHURCH."

In the next letter he speaks first of a depression,
to which he w^as often a victim : —

" I have been without an assistant, and overwhelmed, not
so much with work, though I have had more than the usual
amount, but with a very obdurate fit of depression, of which I
am quite ashamed, but which is very painful."

He then goes on to speak of the '' Catholic
Apostolic Church " : —

" I don't believe in their claims at all ! In the beginning
of the movement there was much that was good, thovigh even
then mixed with error, impatience, and fanaticism. [Perhaps, as
Mr. Baxter thinks, there was also some demoniac influence.]
As for the revival of the Apostolate, I think it was never
intended, and is in itself, to my mind, an impossibility. The
Apostles were eye-witnesses who had seen Christ, and had
received their commission from Him personally. Only one of
the twelve needed a successor, and that was Judas ! The
other eleven were supplemented by Matthias and Paul, and in
the nature of the case need not and cannot have successors.
There is only one neck in the body connecting the Head with

^TFIE (WTHorJC APOSTOLIC CHURCH: 247

the rest of the organism. Hence we find that while full
particulars are given as to the appointment and qualifications
of bishops and deacons, nothing is said as to future apostles.

" But, if we grant, for argument's sake, that there could be
Apostles, that is, men to whom the risen Christ appears, and
whom He sends forth, what have the so-called apostles to show
as evidence of their mission % What doctrine, work, revival
of the Church, conversion of Jews or heathen 1 I can see
nothing but a confused, semi-Romish, sacramentarian doctrine,
self-instituted Symbolism, and avast amount of machinery, quito
out of proportion to its work.

•' You say they have prayed for restoration of gifts, and wh}^
not believe that they were answered % But although believing
this sincerely, I may doubt both the character of their petitions
and of their gifts. Most men who start new theories and
churches, like Swedenborg, &c., could say the same thing.
Our revelations, &c., are in answer to our prayers. Now as
to miracles and gifts. There is no one who denies that they may
appear at any time. There may have been miracles of heal-
ing and of other kinds, in various periods of the Church.
But I think that miracles are not in accordance with our
present dispensation. For this reason. In the Theocracy
miracles come generally at some great crisis, for instance,
before and at the Exodns ; in the days of Elijah. There were
periods of several centuries during which there was no miracle
at all. From Elijah and Elisha to Christ I think there was
none,i and that is a very long period. When Christ comes
again, there will be signs. The present Church period is one
of testimony, suffering, and faith. And a long intermission of
miracles is therefore not strange.

"Then again as to the prophets and tongues. What have
they ever uttered among the Irvingites but the most common-
place exhortations, like ' Beautiful ! Christ is coming ' 1 The
fundamental truths have been so overlaid that they are seen
only with a very dim and flickering light. They hold the
truth of the Second Advent, and this is very valuable ; but

^ This was evidently written in haste, as there are the
miracles in the times of Isaiah, Daniel, &c.

248 VISIT TO EDINBURGIL

they have in the first place connected it with a theory whicli
may be true or not, the secret rapture, and with the prepos-
terous assumption that it is necessary to belong to them, in
order to be among the wise virgins who are received at the
Lord's Return. I have met some very good and devout men
belonging to them, and had some of their writings, which
I like to a great extent ; but I have not the slighest misgiving
as to the rejection of their claims.

"■ But I must not write any more on this point, or enter on
the other point you mention. You will find many difficulties
disappear as you get more fully satisfied on the great central
points. If we have Christ by faith we have eternal life, and
what more can we want 1 To be spiritually-minded is life and
peace. Whatever Church says least about itself and most
about Christ is, I think, the best. In this respect we have
all to learn much."

A LONDON ECLECTIC CONGREGATION.

"Have you been reading Beck? He is perhaps a little
deficient in the consoling and encouraging element, but there
is something very wholesome about his teaching.

"We spent a few days in Bhxckheath, and I preached to
many of my old people. It was very pleasing to see so much
affection as they showed. I sometimes feel very much
burdened about my ministry here (Notting Hill). There is
something unreal about a London Eclectic congregation.
But I suppose I ought to fall in with the circumstances."

VISIT TO EDINBUEGH.

In the following letter he describes a visit to
Edinburgh endeared by old associations : —

" We came to dear Edinburgh on Saturday, after spending
a few delightful days with old friends in new earth. It is
very refreshing to be with old friends, and to see the children
grown up who loved you long ago. Yesterday I Avent to hear
Dr. MacGregor according to your suggestion. I liked his
simple and warm-hearted exposition of the Lord's Suppei- very

CRUCIFIED WITH CHRIST. 249

much. He excused and mildly defended the Scotch infrequency
of Communion. But I am sure nobody can defend it, and he
himself would like to see it altered. I went to his after-
service. He is a very attractive man, and was very kind. . . .
I am more at home in Edinburgh than anywhere ; I suppose
it is owing to the College days' associations. But it seems
that I am to remain in Babylon ! I dare say it is best so."

CRUCIFIED WITH CHRIST — WHAT IT MEANS.

" I hope you enjoyed the services of Good Friday, &c. If
these special days are helpful to you, you are quite right to use
them. There certainly ought to be most perfect liberty on such
points. I was so thankful for what you said about your
feelings on the doctrine of the Atonement. It is the central
doctrine, and there can be no true view of our blessed Lord
Himself without it. His whole character, and especially His
love, appears in the proper light only when we see the great
purpose for which He came. It seems strange that any one
could ever mistake the Gospels and Epistles on this point.
All the varied and forcible expressions are so abundant and
so clear. I do not think there is any good and adequate theory
of the expiation : it is the mystery, and therefore the stumbling-
block. But the heart and conscience find perfect and abiding
peace only here. You say, that only when we are crucilied
with Christ, we can enter into the Eesurrection light and joy.
This is very true, but allow me to point out to you what I
conceive is the Scripture teaching on this subject. Many good
people are kept in doubt and anxiety because they look upon
this 'crucified with Christ' as a gradual progressive thing.
They never know when they have attained to it, and when
they have a right to the grace and light of resurrection. Now,
we have been crucified together with Christ, once and for ever,
eighteen hundred years ago, just as truly as we fell in Adam.
In our actual experience we notice it only when we come to
know and believe it. Now the conscience being set free, and
that which formerly hindered being taken out of the way, we
are also raised again with Christ, and seated with Christ in
heavenly places. If you view this as o^faot and a cj'ift^ and nob

250 A VICARIOUS ATONEMENT.

as an ethical requirement, you will see that it is perfect, ac-
complished, and eternal. Now comes the exhortation, * Being
risen with Christ, set your affection on things above.' The
usual mode of preaching is ethical. Like Christ, be crucified,
rise from the dead, &c. But you see this is mistaking the
superstructure for the foundation, and never can give peace.
According to this, Col. iii. would be : 'If you have your
affections set on things above, have your affections,' &c., which
is tautology. But we believers have been crucified together
with Christ, and are risen with Him ; therefore we belong to
the above, &c. Now you must bear with me for being so prosy,
for I have you ' on my heart.' It is the greatest blessing
from God, when we have any thirst for this light and love ;
and there is the absolute certainty that the secret of the Lord
is with them that fear Him. How happy we ought to be
when we know ourselves the objects of such love, and the
heirs of such promises ! May you have a long and happy life,
and in the only true sunshine ! "

A VICARIOUS ATONEMENT — SCHLEIERMACHEE.

The followino; letter is on the Atonement, and
refers again to his own earlier struggles with
unbelief : —

" If you strictly and sincerely analyze it, unless Christ died
as a substitute, in the old-fashioned Catholic sense, w^e are all
our own Saviour's ; each one in his manner trying to copy the
example and enter into the Spirit of Christ,

'' Only read Hebrews ix. and x., and it will take away the
finely woven veil of darkness.

" The union of Father and Son is redemption ; the voluntary
character of Christ's Death, the wonderful Mediator position
which Christ holds in Creation — all these points throw light
on the character of the Atonement ; and we can only wonder
that men can charge the doctrine of the Atonement with
representing God as cruel, bloodthirsty, arbitrary, &c. In
John iii. you have the two facts connected. The Son of man
-iitunt be lifted up — and 'for God so loved the world,' &c.

SEPARATION FROM THE WORLD. 251

The one an absolute necessity (if men are to be saved), the
source, the spontaneous love of God. I suffered for years from
the teaching of Schleiermacher's disciples (when I was about
seventeen). These men were just like the Broad Church
people. They are strong in negatives — no vicarious atonement,
no real Inspiration of Scripture, no Conversion by the Holy
Ghost, no assurance of salvation ; everything is simply modi-
fying, analyzing, diluting, and undermining the doctrine and
experience of the Christian Church ; and the real drift and
practical outcome of their teaching is, that we must try to be
good, to die unto sin, and to live unto righteousness, and to
take Christ as our model. They always talk about ' ethical,'
not 'spiritual' — that is born again of the Spirit. If by God's
grace the Image of Christ crucified, as it is given in Isaiah
liii., had not been after all the deepest conviction of my heart,
I would have become a downright Pantheist through their
means. It is this experience which makes me so intolerant
of them. Yet I know, that some of these very men in their
inmost heart believe in the Lord ; and dear Schleiermacher
himself had the Moravian element in him, and his last words
on his death-bed, when he had taken the Lord's Supper with
his family, show that his real trust was, Christ ybr us.

" We find it all so diflicult to take in the idea, that this
present dispensation is that of Christianity despised and in a
minority ; not many wise, etc. (1 Cor.); it is a little flock;
our Lord is as yet incognito, and the attempts to present
Christianity as i:)roved by history, as establislied, as acknow-
ledged by philosophy and the world wisdom, are, although
often well meant, only a virtual altering the quality of
Christianity to gain a large quantity of adherents."

SEPARATION FEOM THE WOELD.

The following extract from a letter bears on the
subject of Separation from the World : —

''Your question is very diflicult of application. Mr. Webb
Peploe I think right in lu'ging a decision before Confirmation^
We must expect from every professing communicant that he

252 THE LORD'S DAY.

will give up 'the world.' What is meant by the World is a
question on which light must be sought, and is more likely to
be found among God's people than the others. But it must
come from within, the stronger affection driving out the other.
Our German Christians are much stricter and more separate
from the world than the English. It is a very sad subject,
and one can only commit those about whom we are anxious to
the Holy Spirit's guidance and influence, and occasionally say
a poiyited word to them. Now-a-days people don't believe in
the flesh, the world, and the devil being our real enemies ; and
the world especially is considered to have existed only in the
days of Pagan Rome."

THE lord's day.

The next letter is on tlie Observance of tlie
Lord's Day : —

'' Your questions are not easily answered in short space. I
think you know my views on Sabbath and Lord's Day. There
is unity and parallel as well as contrast. The Sabbath was,
though a command, a privilege, a kind of gospel; it wns also
understood not merely as a day of rest, but of Spiritual
communion (Isaiah Iviii. 13). It is embedded in the whole law
of Moses, especially the festivals, but this Jewish character
does not affect its universal authority. It is God's will that
fallen men, whose labour is partly punishment and toil, should
rest on the seventh day. In the New Testament, Believers
belonging to the Second Creation, Pvasurrection-Life, have
the lirst day of the week symbolized by the sheaf of Easter.
They start with rest, and then work in its strength, while in
this they have also all the provision they need, as men still
in their Adam nature, on which the Law dwells primarily.
While they keep the (new) Lord's Day, the righteousness of
the Law in this fourth commandment also is fulfilled in them.
Unbelievers and nominal Christians, in not observing the
Lord's Day, both despise the gospel offer and privilege,
embodied in the day, and break the unchanging law of God,
concerning man's weekly rest. So while you must enter fully
into the New Testament character of the Lord's Day (like the

RUTHERFORD'S LETTERS—PERFECTIONISM. 253

Brethren), hold fast the Scotch idea of the connection between
Law and New Testament, and then everybody will hate you ! —
the free people for being strict, and the strict people for being
free. The mere Dominican view of the Lord's Day as a
Church institution is, I am convinced, most inadequate. The
Scotch view is too one-sidedly legal, yet nearer the ichole truth.
I would give anything to see a stricter view of the Lord's Day.
It would do us more good than all self-invented methods of
revival."

Rutherford's letters.
In another letter, he says : —

" I have been reading last week Kutherford's Leifers. They
are indeed fragrant, and very good parallel reading with
Philippians, having personal experience for their substance.
Also a good comment on the Song of Songs. I think it is
the most Herzliche Buch which has come out of Caledonia,
stern and wild."

PERFECTIONISM.

In the following letter he thus speaks of the
Perfection Theory : —

"The verse in the Epistle of John, which you quote, is
quite intelligible as referring to the new man in the Spirit —
born of the Spirit ; but if referred to the whole actual in-
dividual, proves too much, viz. that no Christian ever can sin,
and that any one who sins, is not a Christian. And this is
quite in opposition to chapter i. and chapter ii. 1, 2. The
believer is certainly no longer under the dominion, and within
the sphere, of sin ; and his whole spirit and heart go against
sin ; and yet he is always sinning, and always has need of
confessing his sins. The English mind, as you know, is very
slow in understanding and combining antinomies, and apt to
take up one aspect exclusively. As in this case, either to
dwell on the believer's deliverance from the dominion of sin,
or to dwell on the fact, that as long as we live in the body
we always sin ; there is, on the one side, a danger of self-

254 THE EXTENT OF THE ATONEMENT.

delusion, a low standard of sin, and imaginary, self-complacent
holiness ; on the other of unholiness, self-indulgence, and luke-
warmness."

THE EXTENT OP THE ATONEMENT.

" As to the * extent ' of the Atonement, I can understand
your indignation. It is the same sort of feeling I get when I
read ' Broad Church ' books, and not at all good on a holiday.
Dr. Candlish preached and urged the gospel as freely and
earnestly as any one. I don't think the question is one which
stands between the soul and Christ, but more theoretical.
Any one who feels the need of Christ, and has a glimpse of
who and what Christ is, will sooner or later be at peace.
Theories are of no avail ; either narrow or broad ones ; the
question or rather answer in the Shorter Catechism on effectual
calling is most life-like. To say all are reconciled, if they
only knew it, is not Scripture ; the gospel message is, ' Be ye
reconciled.' The witness of the heart is also against this
theory. Yet it may be meant in a true sense. For in reality
all true Christians mean the same thing. You will find in the
New Testament many more passages than one is inclined to
suppose, in which the special and peculiar relations of the
death of Christ to believers is dwelt upon ; such as, ' Thou hast
redeemed us out of every kindred,' &c. (Rev. v. 9) ; or our
Lord's words (John x. 11) : 'I give My life for the sheep,' in
connection with vers. 26, 27, sheep always used for true
believers, the elect (Eph. v. 25). The intercession of Christ is
a parallel subject (John xvii. throughout). If we view the
Atonement from the believer's point of view, that is after our
having experienced its power, we must see the special and
definite connection between it and the true chosen and
ultimately sound believers."

CONTROVERSY — HOW TO BE CONDUCTED.

"You seem always anxious that everything should appear
fair, rational, and thoroughly understandable to the outsider.
And up to a certain point this is quite right, and it is altogether
advisable ; but we may make the door wide in such a way that

A FREE GOSPEL AND ELECTION. 255

it leads to nothing. Also we may be mistaken as to where
the real diflSculty and opposition lie, for us. We cannot believe
implicitly people's statements on this point. On the other
side, the Scripture representations of God's love and of His
salvation are world-wide and comprehensive. There must
alioays remain, I feel increasingly, a point where we must be
content to confess our utter inability to reconcile two lines of
statements, and must adopt the Apostle's ' the depth,' &c.
(Rom. xi. 33 — 36). Certainly the Arminian ' chance ' and
' co-operative ' system has no occasion for any exclamation of
the kind.

" I enjoyed preaching in Buxton very much. It was a very
interesting audience, and many ministers. Donald Fraser
preached the Sunday before. I was glad to hear him, also
to have long talks with him. We liked both him and Mrs.
Fraser very much."

After referring to other subjects lie concludes : —

"How *unco satisfying' it is to get away from the theo-
logical extracts and (hindrances), to the living waters of the
Word, in which every element is blended perfectly ! "

A FREE GOSPEL AND ELECTION.

" I can understand your feelings about the universal aspect
of the gospel. No doubt there is this aspect of God's love and
Christ's mission in the proclamation of the gospel. But it
must be combined with the special inside and experimental
view. The door is wide open, but I don't like living in the
open street. It must lead to an inner, safe, and homely retreat.
In Scripture, election and God's general goodness are stated
constantly, — and constantly together. Look at Psalm Ixv. : ' O
Thou that hearest prayer, all flesh shall come to Thee.
Blessed is the man whom Thou choosest, and causest to
approach unto Thee.' In John xvii,, the Lord says: 'As
Thou hast given Him power over all flesh, that He may give
eternal life to as many as Thou hast given Ilim.^

"My objection to the Arminian or semi- Arminian is not
that they make the entrance very wide ; but they don't seem

256 THE PURPOSE OF AFFLICTION.

to give you anything definite, safe, and real when you have
entered. There can be no real difference among those who are
trusting in Christ, and living by faith in Him."

THE PURPOSE OF AFFLICTION.

He writes at the close of a year on the effect of
affliction and chastisement : —

"The year that will soon be gone has been a very sad year
to me, and the saddest thing of all is, that I feel little sub-
mission and still less thankfulness for the bitter medicine
from a loving Hand. How much greater have been the
blessings ! You are quite right in thinking that some of our
trials and sufferings are judgments, — not punishments exactly,
but chastisements for sins, negligences, self-chosen paths, etc.
(Psalm xcix. 8 ; 1 Cor. xi. 32). They are always seasons of
humiliation and confession ; but it is love which sends them
to enlighten and to heal us, and to raise us through sorrow
and self-judgment to a higher level, that is to greater humility,
self-distrust, and rejoicing in Christ. The usual ' sweet '
consolation given to Christians in affliction is defective, and I
believe the heart feels it to be so ; it does not sufficiently bring
out the corrective, humbling element ; every branch in Christ
is pruned by the Father, and in this there is an expression of
judgment on what is evil, and a hindrance to growth and
fruit. But remember it is the Father who prunes, and that
we are in Christ, who is our real life. All our experience in
the two Adams, the one iiainful, and the other joyous."

CONNECTION OF THE PRESENT WITH THE FUTURE

LIFE.

In the next letter he refers to the connection of
the present and the future life. He is explaining
references in a lecture which had been recently
given : —

"What I said about life and death was of course only with
reference to a special point. The life of Moses, David, or

CHURCHES AND POLITICS. 257

other great public men, as far as their work and history are
concerned, is ended by death. Christ by death and resurrec-
tion enters into a new stage of His life in reference to
humanity.

*' As for our future work, I have no doubt that there will
be activity, but our life-work, for which we are to be judged
and rewarded, is certainly finished and stereotyped at death.
' The work done in the body.' There is no more serving,
trading with our talents, &c. after death."

PASTOR AND CONGREGATION.

In a letter, dated Oct. 15, 1886, he refers to
tlie cono^reg-ational relations : —

"I wish I knew a good correlate to 'Pastor' which is of all
addresses the dearest to my heart. I have not much delight
in the congregation as a corporate body ; but the individuals
to whom I have been of any help and comfort, are very near
and real to me."

CHURCHES AND POLITICS.

He speaks in regard to Cliurclies and Politics
and Voluntaryism : —

'' The horizon seems troubled again ; and perhaps the old
minister was right, who never read the papers, because he
knew from Scripture what would be the end of all things. I
do not like the combination of Land League and religion. It
is partly a confusion of the Church dispensation with the
millenium, when Psalm Ixxii. will be fulfilled. As citizens,
we are justified in seeking by right means to obtain just and
equitable things; as Christians and Churches we ought to
suffer quietly ! And this is also my answer to your remark
about Voluntaryism. I also do not admire it, as it exists.
If Voluntaries and Dissenters are content to be nothing in
this world but spiritual witnesses and loving epistles of
Christ, then they are indeed fragrant; but if they want
power and echit and the other things, they likely only add a

258 CALVINISM.

bitter and envious spirit, and tlie spirit of bondage to the
multitudes, to the faults and failings of the others."

CALVINISM — REAL AND SUPPOSED DIFFICULTIES.

Eeferring to the case of a young man who had
difficulties about Calvinism, he says : —

" I was much interested in your remarks about the diffi-
culties of the young man who had been brought up in
Calvinistic teaching. I should be sorry to underrate any
mental or spiritual difficulty, or to resort to the simple and
easy method of laying all difficulties to the charge of moral
opposition or perverseness. But it does sometimes appear
strange to me that difficulties are brought forward which do
not touch anything vital or important. In every science you
cannot understand everything at once, and many perplexing
things appear intelligible or at least less obscure afterwards.
If the character and Divinity of Christ, the Atonement, the
influence of God's Spirit in our hearts, the experience of prayer,
and such points are first honestly examined, the other ques-
tions would * range ' themselves. As for ' Pharaoh,' it is not
merely an Old Testament difficulty ; but still more fully and
explicitly in Romans ix. we have the same fact stated,
whatever its explanation.

" Again, as to Calvinistic teaching, I quite admit there is a
hard and logical method of teaching the doctrines of grace,
which is not like Scripture, experimental and spiritual. The
difficulty still remains, however, that as the Church Service is
in the first instance for God's worship and the instruction and
advancement of believers, many things must be explained and
dwelt on, which unbelievers or outsiders cannot fully under-
stand, and which they likely will misunderstand, and at which
they will be offended. In the Gospel of John you can see this
even in the 'public teaching of our Lord. How much more in
His disciple-teaching, such as John xiv. 17, and the Epistles !
But the Church is the congregation of believers, and to them
God's truth must be fully unfolded (see all the Epistles).
Other effoi"ts to bring in others should not be neglected. We

'THE HIGHER LIFE: 259

have too much adapted our whole service and Church-life to
undecided worldly people."

THE ROMISH SERVICE.

" We were a few Sundays ago in Cologne Cathedral.
Nothing can be more wonderful ; it is both majestic and
sweet. But the service is something appalling, and how any
one can find it solemn or attractive is a mystery to me."

"THE HIGHER LIFE."

He writes in resfard to the " Hidier Life" : —

o o

"Your question about the Higher Life will require a long
answer. I see however no difficulty in the point you special-
ize. It is only by the Spirit that we are roused, enlightened,
and enabled to take hold of Christ. After we have done this,
the Spirit is an indwelling Spirit. It is the same Spirit who
first acts on us till we believe in Christ, and then is within
us (Eph. i. 13). After I believe, I possess the Spirit of Son-
ship ; I pray in the Holy Ghost, S:c. The Spirit is in me, and
not merely with me and acting on me, but in me. But this
change or foundation is once for all, and in the nature of
things cannot and need not be repeated; though there are
many phases, renewals, revivals, <tc. The phenomena Ave
notice are all easily explicable in the following way. Kot all
the Spirit's operations are converting. Many people are
merely roused, enlightened, called, and fancy themselves con-
verted. They are truly under Cod's special influence, but they
have not gone on to that actual change, the apprehending of
Christ. Now these people, not possessing faith (but only
wishing for it and making towards it), cannot bring forth the
fruit of faith. With these people what is called the second
conversion is really the frst. Because in the fost movement
(which I do not deny to have been of God), it was only the
intellect, conscience, and sentiment, short of the heart and u-ill,
which was led Christward. They did not really receive Christ,
for Christ is not divided, a Forgiver of sin to-day, and then
years after a Eenewer of heart and Implanter of life. I

260 'THE HIGHER LIFE:

a great many of our loeo'ple are in this state. (Just like
my pessimism.) Ministers, parents are too glad to see any
spiritual concern, and far too readily pronounce people con-
verted, who are only beginning to wake up.

''The second point is, that believers very soon after their
conversion become stationary, drowsy, — Christ even calls them
dead {Sardis), — and for years after make no progress either in
knowledge of the truth, or love, zeal, &c. If they were as
anxious, earnest, and diligent after as they were before that
crisis, it would be different. "We know from observation that
people often go on for twenty or thirty years in this wretched
condition, in middle-age life especially. Now the 'higher
life ' movement points out very wholesome truths to such.
Still I don't think it is on the right foundation, and its
methods are morbid. . . .

"I am not much cheered by the aspect of things — the
whole modern edition of Christianity is not very savoury.
But I think it l^etter that all this hidden Socinianism and
half-baked unbelief should show itself, and the genuine people
who are at present in great danger under these Rabbis, will
then seek for some shelter. We are in perilous times ; and
how thankful we ought to be if we have Christ and the
unction from above. Our isolation, and the contempt of the
world and of the rationalistic church, will become yet greater;
but the one grand thing is to be faithful.

"P.S. — I find I have omitte 1 to mention a third class to
whom the ' Higher Life ' movement is useful. Those who
were true and earnest Christians, but have not been led
sufficiently to see the thorough Gospel character of sanctifica-
tion, and were acting on the co-operative and legal system.
To them the exposition of Christ as sanctification, and passages
like John xv. and Rom. vi., are as it were a new start. But
after all my great concessions, I do oiot think it scriptural."

DR. Keith's last days.

In a letter from Buxton, he speaks of a Jewish
Christian lady whom he had met at the boarding-
house, and of the death of Dr. Keith : —

DR. KEITH'S LAST DAYS. 261

" One interesting acquaintance I made here was with a
Jewish lady who, twenty years ago, became a Christian, and
was deserted by all her family. Her loneliness is touching.
She has a strong, simple faith. She had never met a Jewish
Christian before, and I think has been much cheered by my
conversation. Also Dr. Keith, who spent the last years of
his life in Buxton, had often spoken to her about me. The
landlady in whose house he died, and who was most devoted
to him, has told me much about his last days. He was a
truly good and great man, and as happy as a child to the
very last."

GERMAN TRANSLATIONS OF THE BIBLE.

He thus speaks in a letter of translations of tlie
German Bible : —

" The Germans have two excellent translations besides
Luther's ; one by de Wette, which is both accurate and elegant ;
and another by J. F. von Meyer, which is the best, perhaps,
as the translator was both an excellent scholar and a deeply
experienced Christian."

THE JEWS AND GOSPEL HISTORY.

Keferring to sermons he was preaching on the
GosjDel of Luke, he says : —

"I never realized so much before the tragical character
of the Gospel history — especially from the Jewish point of
view, which is the only way to realize it as history which
actually happened. The Christian Jew has some advantages ;
he is brought into closer contact with the great facts and
with the history of Christ. Our Church is too one-sidedly
doctrinal, and the historical and prophetical elements are
neglected. But we must make the best of what is left us, and
strengthen the things which remain. A revival of the apos-
tolic ministry may perhaps be granted ; or the end may come
without it."

INFLUENCE OF TRIAL.

FAITH STRENGTHENED BY TRIALS.

" I return with my thanks that most affecting letter you so
kindly allowed us to read. The conversations of which Dr.

M told you must be a great comfort to you, and I feel

very thankful to you for telling me about them, and thus
enabling me to enter into fuller sympathy with you, in your
present sorrow. You have passed through many trials ; but
I know that your faith will be strengthened by them, and be
found at last as the Apostle Peter describes (1 Pet. i. 7) ; — a
very glorious and awe-inspiring truth which, when revealed to
the heart by the Spirit of God, sustains us in the sad experi-
ences and sorrows of life, which are so often dark and perplex-
ing. ' We walk by faith as strangers here.' It is indeed a
valley of tears ; — though often unseen, how much sorrow there
is in human hearts ! "

563

CHAPTEE XXil.

MINISTEY IX WEST LONDON FEOM 1875 TO 1880.

His Assistants — Kev. H. E. Brooke, Rev. J. Stephens, and
Rev. J. H. Topping — Lady Grant — Miss Cavendish — His
Failiu-e of Strength — Difficulties — Nervousness — Degree of
Doctor of Divinity from Edinburgh — Resignation in 1880
— The Misses Jacomb — Brief Ministry at Kensington.

IN the year 1875, Dr. Saphir's health, which was
always uncertain, became seriously afifected.
He could not continue two services on the Lord's
Day. He could preach once on Sunday, and give
a lecture on Thursday, but when he attempted
to preach twice on the same day he became utterly
exhausted. He had, therefore, to get an assistant
to supply his place when he was away, or when
at home he did not feel equal to preaching.

His first assistant was the Eev. Henry E. Brooke,
son of the late Master Brooke of Dublin, Judge
in Chancery. ]\Ir. Brooke had been a clergyman
of the Church of England, but had left it, from
conscientious scruples. Dr. Saphir in writing to
me, in regard to him — when I consulted him
about another church — said : — " He is a most ex-
cellent, spiritual, thorough man, a good scholar,

264 REV. H. E. BROOKE.

and a most instructive and edifying preacher.
When Mr. Brooke was with me at Notting
Hill it was only in an interval of engagements.
I should have been only too glad if he had
continued, but of course he was far too good for
the post. I cannot say too much in praise of
him." Mr. Brooke continued to assist him for
about seven months, and enjoyed his association
with him. One of his chief difficulties was the
frequent absence of Dr. Saphir, and the painful
sense of the disappointment of those who had
come long distances to hear him. He says : —

" His health was always weak, and made him shrink from
going much among his people. He was very uncertain as to
his power of preaching at any particular time " (that is at
this period), "and one of the most trying things connected
with my period of service was that sometimes on Sunday
morning when a large congregation (gatbereiJ, many of them,
from a distance), were assembled to hear him, a message would
come to me in the vestry, shortly before the time for opening
the service, to say, ' I am not well to-day, please take the
whole service.' The congregation bore my taking the early
part, reading and prayer, as I often did that when he
preached, but when it came to my going up into the pulpit,
their looks, and sometimes an audible ' Oh ! ' betrayed their
disappointment.' '

Mr. Brooke writes further : —

" His dealings with me in the matter of Baptism illustrate
his large-hearted ness on such points. When asking me to
assist him, which I did for a winter and spring, I referred to
my inability to baptize infants. He said he knew of it, but
as I was not appointed by the Presbytery, or officially recog-
nized, it would not matter. I added, * I fear I ought to say
that I do not think it would be consistent in me to be present,

REV. JAS. STEPHENS. 265

if there were such baptisms going on.' He said he thoroughly
understood my feelings, and that he would always ex'-use my
absence on sach occasions. He added, that if he had the
mmagement of church matters, he would letve Baptism (as to
its subjects, mode, &c.) an open question, and not allow it to
divide those who were members of the Church. I remember,
too, once in the vestiy saying to him, ' You do not wear the
gown like other Presbyterian ministers.' 'No,' he answered,
* I used to ; but one day I was putting on my gown before the
glass, and the thought struck me : Why do I put it on ? I
cannot say why I do so — I won't do so.' So he threw it off,
and never again wore it. This would illustrate his originality
and independence, though I am not sure that his reason was
a very good one."

After Mr. Brooke left, the Rev. James Stephens,
the well-known Baptist minister of High gate,
then beginning his ministry, was the assistant for
two years. It was now definitely arranged that
the assistant should take the Sunday evening
services, and do the great part of the pastoral work.
Mr. Stephens writes that he enjoyed much his
association with Dr. Saphir. " It was to me a
privilege to be permitted to have intercourse with
him, and one could not but love him." Mr.
Stephens was much esteemed as a preacher, though
of course the position was difficult, as the con-
gregation was a special one, composed of people of
all churches, attracted by Saphir personally. His
departure, when called to his present charge, was
much regretted by Dr. Saphir and the congregation.

When Mr. Stephens left in 1877, the Rev. J.
H. Topping succeeded him, and continued to be
assistant, till Dr. Saphir resigned his charge in

266 SAPHIR'S ATTRACTIVENESS.

1880. Mr. Topping was a devoted friend of the
Saphirs, with whom they kept up frequent inter-
course to the last. He was very active in visiting
and doing congregational work, and he preached
on the Sunday evenings, and often at other times.

Saphir had that singular power, possessed by
only a few, generally men of genius as dis-
tinguished from mere talent or cleverness, with
which genius is so often confused,— and alv/ays
men of heart, — of attracting^ round him devoted
followers, both men and women, who would have
done anything in the world for him. There are
those, and not a few, who speak with enthusiasm
of Saphir and his conversation, and his sermons
above all ; and who cannot write of him except
in the spirit of eulogium and strong affection.
To those who understood him, — and he could
discern at a glance real from assumed admir-
ation, and instinctively see into character with
a swiftness and power possessed by the very few,
— to those with whom he felt in sympathy, and
who he knew understood him, — he was the most
open-hearted, genial, and constant of friends,
without one shadow of constraint or formality.

The friendship of Lady Grant, the widow of the
well-known Sir Hope Grant, was remarkable. It
was like the tender atiection of a near relative. Sir
Hope and Lady Grant had been known in India
as devoted Christians, who never avoided showing
their sympathy with even the most humble labourers
in Christ's vineyard. The following anecdote of

SIR HOPE GRANT. 267

their life at Meerut illustrates this : — Walking out
late one evening, they saw lights, and heard sing-
ing in a small building. They went in and found
it was a soldiers' chapel, of which they had never
even heard. Among the soldiers present there were
only two of the Lancers (Grant's regiment), the
one named Williams, and the other named Tabor.
Hearing that the former was in the habit of giving
addresses in the chapel, Major Grant sent for him,
and learnt that he had been preparing for the
Wesleyan ministry, when from some unknown
cause he gave it np and enlisted. Major Grant
went to hear him, and w^as delighted with his
earnestness and natural eloquence. He and Mrs.
Grant not only attended themselves, but did all
they could to induce the men to do so. When,
many years after. Sir Hope was Commander-in-
Chief of the Madras Army — his last service in
India — working parties for the w^omen were estab-
lished in almost every regiment, and every Christian
or benevolent work met with ready sympathy and
effectual help. This Christian aspect of his character
w^as noted in lines in which the following words
occur :

" One wlio?:e pious life had no need to divide
The Christian and the Captain — well content
To pray with his own soldiers bide by side."

His end was peace. He more than once expressed
his assurance, " I know that my sins are forgiven.
I know they are washed away in my Saviour's
blood." He several times spoke of dying as " going

268 LADY GRANT.

into another room " — " passing through a dark
archway " ; and when asked if he were happy he
replied, " Perfectly happy."

Sir Hope and Lady Grant had just found out
Saphir, and begun to attend his ministry, before
Sir Hope's death. Lady Grant was a singularly
beautifal character, meek, and humble, and Christ-
like, full of kindness and self-abnegation.

A soldier thus describes her sympathy with the
men and their families in Lidia : — " Our noble
chief and Lady Grant, when lately at our station,
were wont to countenance our games, and to be
present at our meetings of prayer, and her ladyship
visited every house in our Parcherry, not to inspect
and criticize, but to speak a kindly word, and,
when required, to extend a helping hand ; and to
this day, the tokens of her kindness are exhibited
in the cherished Bible, or in some other beneficial

gift."

Lady Grant derived great benefit from the
ministry of Dr. Saphir, and she became most
warmly attached to him and to his wife. She was
a frequent visitant at their house, and a sharer
in all their joys and sorrows. She watched over
him as if he had been her son. Lady Grant
always followed him in his ministry. She went
first to the church at Notting Hill ; then to
Kensington when he preached there, and then to
Belgravia, during the six years of his ministry
there. She died a few months after his death.

Another friend greatly devoted to him was

MISS CAVENDISH. 269

Miss Cavendish, of the well-known Cavendish
family. Miss Cavendish saw him frequently, and
always spoke enthusiastically to her friends about
him. She also worked a great deal for him, and
took charge of all the details of plans which he
wished carried out. She raised large sums to help
him in his various enterprises, and gave most
liberally to them herself. It was by her that the
arrangements were made for the last course of
lectures delivered in Kensinsfton, which have been
published since his death. She was always ready
to help him in every enterprise. Her unexpected
death in 1890, after a few days' illness, at the age
of about thirty-five, was greatly felt by the Saphirs.
Dr. Saphir was with her to the last.

During these years there was a constant struggle,
as regards health. He had been anxious, at the
beginning of his Notting Hill ministry, that the
Rev. Robert Taylor of Upper Norwood should
become co-pastor. Such an arrangement would
have removed many difficulties, and Mr. Taylor
thought of it seriously, from his love to Saphir,
and his desire to save him from anxiety, for the
good of the whole Church — but it did not seem
practicable. At first, however, he seemed to have
recovered his strength, and to be able for the work,
but from 1875 onwards it was otherwise. His true
position in this later period would have been that
of a select preacher, with no pastoral connection.
Difficulties arose in connection with his failure of
strength, which made him anxious and low-spirited.

270 RESIGNATION OF CHARGE.

He was of a very nervous temperament, and he
became worried and ill, when he could not accom-
plish all that he wished, or that was expected of
him. Complaints arose when he had to be fre-
quently absent. He therefore felt constrained, to
the great grief of many of his congregation, to
resigti his charge. The church had been purchased
for him, and large sums of money had been spent
on it in connection solely with his ministry, and
it did seem hard to his devoted friends that he
should leave. Many were the regrets expressed,
and great were the struggles in his own mind. He
resigned, — feeling however uncomfortable, anxious
and low-spirited. Preaching was his delight, and
he was never happy, when not regularly engaged
in it. After a time, he accepted another pastorate,
where he had many followers, but still he had
never the same joy and satisfaction as in his
ministries at Greenwich, and during the earlier
years at Notting Hill. He was succeeded in the
Notting Hill church by the Rev. Dr. Sinclair
Paterson. Dr. Paterson was a devoted friend and
admirer of Saphir, and was greatly esteemed by
him.

In the year 1878, Dr. Saphir received the degree
of Doctor of Divinity from the University of
Edinburgh. His claims to such an honour were
fully stated by the Rev. Professor Charteris, D.D.,
then Dean of the Faculty of Divinity. He was
very glad to receive the degree from Edinburgh,
to which, as a centre of Academic learning, he was

THE MISSES JACOMB. 271

warmly attached, liaviiig spent there his best and
happiest student days. Dr. Charteris writes, re-
ferrino- to Saphir's head and heart knowledtre of
Holy Scriptures, as shown in his writings, " I am
gkid he was our D.D."

Dr. Sajjhir spent about six months in Scotland,
chiefly at St. Andrews and Edinburgh, after his
resiojnation of his charo-e at Nottino; Hill. He
then returned to London, and stayed for the
winter with his devoted friends the Misses Jacomb,
whose house was often a home to him for months,
and with whom Mr. and Mrs. Sapliir frequently
went for change to favourite English resorts. Both
he and Mrs. Saphir had no friends in Loudon to
whom they were more attached, or who showed
them again and again, in times of trial, more hearty
affection and genuine kinduess. They mourn their
loss as if they had been near relations. They
had an intense enjoyment in his society, as had
all who really knew him. There was wit, humour,
and transparency, with wide knowledge, extensive
reading, and sound judgment as to affairs. He
was always simple and natural, with no assumed
airs or pretended importance. Having stored his
furniture and given up his house, he remained
with the Misses Jacomb from October to the
beginning of summer. Daring this period of seven
or eight months he preached in the mornings at the
Presbyterian Church, Kensington, now St. John's,
of which the Eev. Dugald. McColl, well known by
his successful labours in the wynds of Glasgow,

272 SHORT MINISTRY AT KENSINGTON.

was the minister — then, however, laid aside by
that illness which caused his early much-lamented
death. A strong wish was expressed by many
that Saphir would become permanently associated
with this church, but there was not unanimity,
and he did not desire to remain, — though he had
preached there to large congregations.

273

CHAPTER XXIII.

MINISTRY IN BELGRAVIA.

Congregation of Halkin St. — Rev. J. T. Middlemiss bis
Assistant — Extracts from his Diary, and Saphir's Lettere
to him — Record of his Intercourse with Saphir — Resigna-
tion of Halkin St. Church — Lectures on the Divine Unity
of Scripture — Mr. Grant Wilson's Reminiscences — Letter
to a Servant — A New School Minister — To whom are
the Epistles addressed? — Carlyle — A Family AflBiction —
Letters to a Widowed Niece — Letter to a Norwegian Sea-
Captain on Baptism.

IN Feb. 1882 the congregation of Belgrave
Presbyterian Church, which had been vacant
from the time of the transfer of Dr. Sinclair
Paterson to Trinity Church, resolved to call Dr.
Saphir. He was at first very undecided, but was
induced at last to accept. Dr. Paterson, who felt
that it would be much better both for Saphir and
for the cause of Christ that he should have a
settled pastorate, used all his influence in bringing
about the arrangement, and mainly effected it ;
and one gentleman, since dead, Mr. Cockburn, a
leading director of the Union Bank of London,
offered £200 per annum towards his salary.

Mr. Grant Wilson, who for his sake accepted
office as one of the elders, and who was a devoted
friend, WTites in regard to this period : —

274 CONGREGATION OF HALKIN ST.

*' There were cheering things in the congregation. Mr.
Cockburn's liberality. Miss Cavendish was ever ready to do
everything that could be suggested for Dr. fSaphir's comfort.
She purchased, at great cost, an admirable system of ventilation.
The foul air was mechanically exhausted, and replaced by puri-
fied air, — when needful vvaimed. She also furnished a new
vestry, and provided a dispensary at a cost of £90 per annum
for Sloane Place. Lady Hope Grant, Sir William McKinnon,
Lord lilantyre, and many distinguished persons, including the
Serjeant-at-Arms of the House of Commons (Gossett) were
constant attendants."

This congregation had been ministered to for
many years by the Rev. Thomas Alexander, an able
man, much loved by his people, and then, as we
have indicated, by the Rev. Dr. Sinclair Paterson for
eight years. It was arranged that Dr. Saphir was
to take the Morning Service, and was to have an
assistant to preach at the Evening Service and to
care for the pastoral work. He had in succession
several excellent assistants, notably the Rev. J. T.
Middlemiss, now of Sunderland, to whom he was
much attached ; but the system did not always
work smoothly, and he was often cast down and
anxious.

The following extracts from his diary, kindly
forwarded by Mr. Middlemiss, give a vivid picture
of Saphir's varying states of mind, and of the
anxieties and worries, often unnecessary, caused
by his feeble bodily health, which lay at the root
of all his changes and uncertainties, and the trouble
of which was always increasing in his later years.

"May 17, 1884. Dr. Saphir contemplates resigning, and
thinks he is not a success. The congregations are good, the

MR, MIDDLEMISS' DIARY. 275

church being nearly full. The new Scotch Church in Park
Street (St. Columba) is affecting us, specially when men like
Tulloch, Caird, and Macgregor are there. The real cause of his
depression is Mrs. Saphir's illness. Dr. Kidd has told Dr. S.
that she may not walk again. Much cheered by a visit from
Dr. Fleming Steven.<on, who advises him to stay, and points
out that Belgravia has peculiar difficulties, so that he need not
be discouraged.

"June 12, 1884, Dr. S. has been for three weeks at
Tunbridge Wells. He returned to-day in wonderful spirits,
quite a new man. A specialist has informed him that Mrs.
Saphir's illness is quite temporary.

"June 29, 1884. It is customary for each Jew to have
given him a verse, when a child, which he calls his verse.
Dr. Saphir's verse was, ' I am the Lord thy God, which brought
thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.'
The verse has all his life long been very dear to him.

''Oct. 22, 1884. Dr. S. said— 'Pascal's T'/ioz^^/^ is have in-
fluenced me more than any book I know.' He admires Claus
Harms very much, and lent me his Life to read. His sermons
are much enjoyed by Dr. Saphir. He also spoke very highly
of a cultured Roman Catholic divine whose writings he knows
— Veille of Vienna.

"Dr. Saphii' possesses all that Dr. Beck (Tiibingen) and
Claus Harms published. He delights to preach. It is no
trouble to preach to an expectant people. He greatly
advocates extempore commenting, as the Scripture is read.
Last Sabbath he never reached his sermon, but commented in
a remarkably powerful manner on Psalm xxv. I may add
that this was the finest thing I ever heard Dr. Saphir give.
It was purely spontaneous, as he had another sermon prepared.
He spoke over half-an-hour.

"Dec. 9, 1884. Conversation turned on Dr. Norman
McLeod, whom Saphir highly esteemed. When on the Con-
tinent with him, Dr. S. said, ' I was never with him more than
half-an-hour without his mentioning the name of Christ, and
sjDeaking of his soul or of heaven. Though he was broad
on the Sabbath question, no man kept the Sabbath more
simply, strictly, or piously, even when on the Continent.

27G MR. MIDDLEMISS' DIARY.

"Jan. 18 to 25, 1885. Dr. S. told me that when a boy he
was much in Vienna with his uncle, Moritz Saphir, who was
the editor of a paper there. All eminent players and singers
came to see his uncle. . . . He complains much about pains in
the head. He ' cannot work, and at times feels stupid.' When
quite at ease he speaks much in Scotch lingo. I may add that
when in the vestry before service, and thinking much, and
nervous, he invariably spoke to me in German.

"March 9, 1885. Exceedingly nervous in view of Session
meeting ; no sleep last night. Had been again thinking of
resignation. This meeting led him to think of remaining
another year at Belgravia. He returned home quite cheery ;
both Dr. and Mrs. S. in best spirits.

" Dr. S. thinks he is himself too metaphysical and theo-
logical to be a good popular preacher, but he is too fond of
preaching and of taking part in the congregational service to
leave that, and devote himself to theology proper.

"Oct. 25. Said to-day in his sermon, of John x. 14: 'I
think without doubt this is the most precious verse of
Scripture.'

" Preached at Greenwich last week to large congregation. A
big working-man came to him after the service and wanted
to say something, but could not get it out for sobs. At last
he said, ' Don't forget to remember us.' This impressed Dr.
S. much.

" Dec. 3. Unable to make up his mind — whether to resign
or wait until June. Does not know whether to have another
assistant, or colleague and successor. Asked me if I would
remain as colleague. His favourite hymn is that of Zinzen-
dorff, translated by John "Wesley — 'Jesus, Thy blood and
righteousness.' Portraits in his study — Gossner, Nitzch, Glaus
Harms, Louis Harms, Melancthon, McCheyne, and Spener.

The following are extracts from letters of Dr.
Saphir to Mr. Middlemiss : —

" You know my views of the sanguine expectations of Pres-
byterians, looking merely to population, &c. The minister is
the martyr, and is judged by outward success, when it is often
quite impossible."

LETTERS TO MR. MIDDLEMISS. 277

" I am sorry to think that in London and in our peculiar
circumstances advertising on a Lirge scale and persistently is
our main chance. It is peculiarly distasteful to me. So like
Pears' Soap, &c."

" The conviction on the Second Advent will come to you in
good time; it is rather the result of the impression of the
whole tenor of Scripture than the exegesis of a few passages.
But you need not be anxious nor impatient about it. Here
also the letter killeth ; it is the spiritual attitude towards
Christ and against the world which is everything. I some-
times feel as if we talked about the Lord's return too much,
and not with the kind of timid reticence which a real affec-
tion would produce. But I may be morbid in this also : my
present tendency is silence.''

In a further communication Mr. Micldlemiss
says : —

" On my first going to Belgrave as Dr. Saphir's assistant,
his reception of me was very cordial. I had not been long
there however before I found that he was somewhat restless.
He was not sure whether he would long remain the minister
of that church or not. He contemplated resigning now and
then, during the whole time I was with him. At times he
was fully persuaded to give up, at other times he was just as
desirous to remain. The causes for these states of mind were
several. The most important amongst them was his oimi
loeakness.

" He was seldom well. I cannot say that he ever had more
than seven consecutive days of good health. Yery often he
was well one day and unwell the next. I never knew any
individual so variable. To-day he might be on the mountain-
top, enjoying exquisite visions, to-morrow he would be down
in the valley, wrapt in gloom. Dr. Saphir lived a retired,
simple life, but when his liver was troubling him he found it
difficult to view things in their right perspective. He took
distorted views of matters, magnified little troubles, and
became despondent. Hence he so often thought he was not
succeeding in Belgrave; and his extreme sensitiveness, leading

278 RECORD OF

him to imagine that the office-bearers there might think so
too, led him to speak of resigning.

" The next cause was Mrs. Saphirs illness.
" It is not necessary for me to try and tell how much they
were to each other. They lived for, and were tenderly solicitous
of each other. As circumstances afterwards showed, they
could not live apart. His decease was no surprise to me,
when she had gone. Her illness made him ill. And when her
medical man told him that she was likely to be permanently
invalided, he almost lost heart. He desired to submit to God's
will. He thought he ought to give up his ministerial duties
and attend on her, and yet he felt called to preach the gospel.
She knew he would not be happy unless proclaiming God's
truth, and yet she grieved to see him troubling himself about
matters in connection with Belgrave church. After a brief
rest at a watering-place, where a doctor had said she would
soon recover, he came back bright, buoyant, and hopeful. A
great load had been lifted from his mind.

"Preaching only in the morning, and coming seldom into
contact even with the leaders of the church, he never knew
the people, he never knew how they regarded him, or how
he helped them. Any results of his ministry came only
through people who visited him.

" During the whole of my intercourse (two and a half years)
with him he was exceedingly kind. He welcomed me to his
home, and admitted me to the closest intimacy. No one could
have been more generous or considerate. Whenever he was
not going to preach at the morning service, he offered to
give a fee for supply, if I thought the two services would be
too much. I was struck too with the phrase which he in-
variably used, when introducing me to strangers. He always
said, ' Mr. M., loho is associated loith me in the ministry at
Belgrave.' It reminded me of Leitch Ritchie's invitation
to James Payn. Piitchie was editor of Chambers' Journal,
and he wrote, ' I have long felt the need of help ; will you
come and be my co-editor?' Most men would have said
sn6-editor. He possessed a large vein of humour, and in
his younger days he had written many light pieces which
never saw the light. When quite well he would say crisp,

INTERCOURSE WITH MIDDLEMISS. 279

bright, sometimes pointed and keen things, and not iin-
freqviently looked a little startled at his audacity, in having
given utterance to them. This happened in his liveliest moods.
He enjoyed a good story very much.

"There was a kindliness and tenderness about him which
made him very attractive, with great simplicity and childlike-
ness of disposition. These features of his character enabled
him easily to throw himself into the spirit of Faber's words : —

* If our love were but more simple,
"We should take Him at His word ;
And our lives would be all sunshine
In the sweetness of our Lord.'

" Mrs. Saphir was frank, outspoken, and very tender-hearted.
If she took to any one, she overflowed with kindness. Like
Dr. S., she was extremely sensitive."

Dr. Sapliir writes of a visit to his old church at
Greenwich : —

''I cannot describe how thankful I feel for this visit. I
had no idea my ministry was such a reality to the people, up to
this day. The church was crowded, and more than one hundred
people spoke to me afterwards. The dear people who are now
scattered in different congregations took their old seats in the
church. Many young men and women who had been very
dear to me were there. Altogether I am quite delighted and
strengthened in the faith ; only sorry I had ever left them !
But no doubt it was to be so. Sara was with me, and greatly
enjoyed it."

Dr. Sa^^hir remained at Halkin Street till April
1888, when he resigned his charge. The congrega-
tion suffered a good deal from the j^roximitj of
Dr. McLeod's church ; and he became disheartened
when the congregation in any way diminished.

After his resignation he continued to live in
Lansdowne Koad, Netting Hill ; but now with-

280 LECTURES IN KENSINGTON.

out any charge, frequently preachiDg in different
churches. In the winter of 1888-89 he delivered
a course of Lectures in Kensington, which have
been published since his death — the most im-
portant perhaps of all his works,^ and a valuable
contribution to the present controversy on the Old
Testament, — in which he was entirely opposed to
the revolutionary attempts of the so-called higher
critics of recent times, whose representations he
regarded as mere fancies emanating really from a
pantheistic spirit, and irreconcilable with the idea
of the Divine authority of the Scriptures, and also
with the internal evidence of the books themselves.

Mr. Grant Wilson writes : —

"These matters were constantly in his heart, and formed a
great part of his conversation. A part of the Parade at St.
Leonard's seems almost sacred to me — that between the Colon-
nade and Dormer's Library. My children called it the
Pilgrims' Path, as Saphir and I paced it hour by hour — two
greybeards — in earnest talk ; he pouring forth all he felt
about the fallings away from the truth, the many false teach-
ings, the ignorance of much of them, and their frequent
unfairness ; how, routed on one point, they had often not
the honesty to confess defeat, but simply attacked in a new
quarter ; — I deeply sympathizing, and chiefly a listener.

'' His early life was most interesting, as he spoke of it.
The devout father * waiting for the consoltition of Israel,'
and teaching his children so carefully in all he knew, thus
making him so thoroughly furnished, according to the Jews'
religion, and preparing him for his after work as a Christian
teacher. His pictures of his father, and of his devout home-

1 Tlte Divine Unity of Scripture. Hodder and Stoughton.
1892.

MR. GRANT WILSON';S REMINISCENCES. 281

life, and training of his children, had a great charm about
them, and I recall them with peculiar pleasure.

" A special charm in Dr. Saphir and his preaching was its
singular freshness. * We have found the Messiah.' ' We
have found Him of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets,
did write — -Jesus of Nazareth, the Son of Joseph ' — found con-
tinuous expression in him. The find seemed so real, so nevj
and so glorious, and so ever-present, that it became a new
revelation to all who came into contact with him.

•' Another feature of his preaching was his power, after
a few words in passing, to summarize or characterize the
various books of Scripture. His marvellous knowledge and
constant study eiiablerl him thus to give us very briefly the
history, scope, and main characteristics of the prophets, &c.

" I first heard Dr. Saphir in Kidley Herschell's church —
Ridley Herschell was the father of the present Lord Chan-
cellor. Dr. Saphir was introducing his brother-in-law. Dr.
Schwartz, as Herschell's successor. Many think of Saphir as
deeply learned, and a wonderful feeler of the flock; above
all, as one who provided treasures, rew and old, for devout
Christians. But he was also wonderful in his simplicity and
clearness."

Wc have received the following interesting
letter, enclosing one from Dr. Saphir : —

"Having seen," says the writer, "your letter in Word and
Work, in the beginning of September, I have sent this letter
from dear Dr. Saphir in re[ ly to one I had written to him,
telling him how God had blessed his ministry to me.

" 1 am a servant. I was away from London, and had not
the letter with me. I had the privilege of hearing Dr. Saphir
nearly every Sunday morning while he was minister of Bel-
grave church, and his ministry was blessed to me far above
what I could have asked or thought ; and if you think, sir,
there is anything in this letter that might be helpful to any
other soul who may be going through the depths of spiritual
darkness and trouble, I shall be glad to have had the oppor-
tunity of sending it. I value it amongst my best treasures."

T

^282 LETTER fO A SERVANT.

The letter is as follows : —

" I thank you very niiicli for your kind note. It is a
very great encouragement to me to hear that my words are
blessed to my hearers, and that God is pleased to comfort and
restore any of His children through my ministiy. Though
a minister ought never to doubt that God "vvill bless the
message, yet faith is often painfully tested ; and a note
like yours is very refreshing. I am not able to see much of
my hearers ; and though I feel my heart very much drawn
out every Sunday, to lead each one to the Fountain of living
waters, I often wonder how far my words hnd entrance into
the mind and heart. The believer often feels very lonely,
and thinks no one has come through such painful experiences
and depths as he has ; and Satan often uses this feeling of
desolateness and sadness to inject doubts and hard thoughts.
But if we read the Psalms, the prayer of Samuel, and many
other passages of Scripture, we find that Ave are not alone,
and that all the children of God pass through manifold and
heavy soul-trials. Psalm xiii. is precious. Peter's great object
is to 'strengthen the brethren,' because he knew from ex-
perience the weakness of the believers, apart from Christ.
And all these experiences have only one object : to keep us
humble, and to make us debtors to grace ; — the longer we live,
the more. In heaven we shall be so clothed with humility,
that there will be no need of these painful experiences, to
make us feel the exceeding preciousness of the Blood of Christ.
I trust you will continue resting in the Lord and praising
His grace. It is a good thing that the heart be established
with grace.

"Again thanking you for your note, and hoping that you
will remember in your prayers one who is in much weakness
both of body and soul,

" I am,

" Yours faithfully,

''A. S.M'IIIK.

«' p^g. — Accept a few of my writings with my best wishes."

.1 'NEW SCHOOL' MINISTER. 283

We give here some extracts from further letters
of these later years, to Lady Kinloch : —

A " NEW SCHOOL " MINISTEE.

'' The enclosed note of the minister is quite plain. He is
evidently in a perplexed state, and fancies he is one of the
apostles and martyrs of the ' New School.' I am very sorry.
It can only do harm to ventilate these negative opinions in
the pulpit. A Bible without inspiration (and lax views of
inspiration virtually, to the general public, amount to no
inspiration), an atonement without substitution, a Christianity
without conversion and the work of the Holy Ghost — these
generally go together, and of course such teaching will con-
ciliate outsiders — to remain as they are ! and only starve or
ruin the sheep. I have the greatest horror of the whole
school, and that from experience. I have sympathy and also
hope when I see in Germany or elsewhere a Unitarian or
sceptic making his way to the light, holding lax views; he will
likely come on to full knowledge ; but to hear our Presbyterian
ministers talk in this broad way is to me perfectly distressing.
But if I may suggest anything to you, I would to a certain
extent ignore and avoid the subject with Mr. M. For he will
only feel bound to emphasize his crotchets all the more. Dwell
on what of truth positive about Christ and spiritual experiences
he does teach, and then he will see what you think truly
important. But you know best. Are we helping people to
take hold of Christ by repentance and faith ? It is not strict
theories of inspiration, &c., which keep men from coming to
the Saviour and beginning a new life, or seeking the power of
the Holy Ghost. These ' broad men ' are great Philistines and
pedants and book men. Where are they when there is a real
revival 1 "

TO WHOM AKE THE EPISTLES ADDRESSED ?

Writing in regard to the present state of aifciirs
in the Churches he says :—

''I think the whole Bible is given by God to Israel and the

284 THE EPISTLES—TO WHOM ADDRESSED.

Church, before the whole world and for the whole world ; but
it is evident that much of the Bible is only addressed to, and
understood by, the true Believers. Every author writes for a
certain public, who can understand and appreciate him ; and
the Holy Ghost, the true author of Scripture, inspired the
Bible, that the man of God may be perfected, &c. Of course
we urge all people to read the Bible, and to regard it as a
message to them from above, and we know not when this
reading may become a real revelation. The Epistles are
plainly addressed only to saints, believers, spiritual men, who
have an unction from above. This I think most important,
and the neglect of this truth has greatly contributed to the
utterly worldly condition of the Churches. I shall try to
refute briefly what is said against this view : (1) The
Epistles are addressed to professing Christians (whether con-
verted or not). In Apostolic days the Jews and former
pagans who professed Christianity, professed also that they
believed personally, and had experienced the grace of God.
Although there were hypocrites, &c., they were men and
women, who, in repentance and faith, separated themselves
from the world, and gave themselves to Christ and the new
life. Then there were tares among the wheat ; now, I fear, we
have only wheat among the tares? (2) The Epistles, it is said,
are addressed to the baptized. Yes ; but the baptized then,
as Acts ii. tells us, were believers, who from the heart had
received the Word of God, and were thus sealed — not like our
mass of traditionally baptized, most of whom have no experi-
ence of Christ, many of whom are worldly and dead, not a few
of whom are Agnostics. This produces the strange phenomenon
of Churches which ought to be a witness against the world,
actually cherishing and encouraging the world as part of them-
selves. Christendom is fast ripening into the apostasy. Ach
iveh ! I think the Plymouthists err not so much in their
principles, as the application of them." He adds : " We are in
the times of the Gentiles, when Israel (! !) is in unbelief, when
the Church is a witness and suffering, when Christendom is
ripening to the great Apostasy. Then comes the Parousia,
or Advent, and the New Dispensation. We know enough to
keep us hopeful and watchful, to warn us against Christendom

DELITZSCWS ' INSTirUTUM JUDAICUM: 285

and its whole Wesen, and also to make us content to be a
minority — *The stupid party.' You see I am enough of a
Plymouthist to make me feel very lonely among the
Presbyterians, and yet I could not be a Plymouthist, as 1
think they evade difficulties and trials which are put upon us,
and as I think they are unscriptural in their method — without
Presbyters. I console myself with individual believers in
all the Churches. The Churches are getting most fearfully
Gentiley and unscriptural."

DELITZSCH's 'INSTITUTUM JUDAICUM.'

"I am now very much interested in Professor Delitzsch's
Jewish work. The Institutum Jiidaicinn, which is now planted
in seven German universities, seems to have arisen in a meeting
of a few theological students for prayer for Israel, at which
they read my tract, Wer ist der Apostat ? I had a very
beautiful letter telling me this from the secretary."

Of the aspects of the time he says : —

" We are approaching very severe sifting times in our
Churches. There is little faith in the authority of God's
Word, and we shall soon see the true character of philosophical
Christianity. I think the fewer books we read the better ; it
is like times of cholera, &c., when we should only drink filtered
water, &c. Psalm xci. 5, 6, is a promise for these days. There
is no bridge between God's truth and man's wisdom, and I
suspect most attempts to conciliate reason, of treason."

In a letter from Brighton he says —

"There is no brtdr/e between reason and the un discoverable
truths of re%'elation, and we cannot save any one the leap of
faith."

Speaking of Carlyle, he says : —

" What a curious man Carlyle was, according to Froude's
statements. One cannot help liking him in spite of all his
oddities and faults, and his sad want of Christian faith. His

286 .1 BITTER FAMILY AFFLICTION.

estimate of art is refreshing in this age of altogether morbid
artisticness. I was very pleased to notice he liked Tieck's
novels. I see to-day that Ranke, in his ninetieth year, has
published another volume of his WeltgescJiichfe. The first two
volumes I have read are wonderful, and such pleasant reading,
as his style is very lucid."

A BITTER FAMILY AFFLICTION.

There was a favourite niece, the daughter of a
deceased sister of Mrs. Saphir, who was much
with the Saphirs, both l)efore and after her great
sorrow, and greatly beloved by them. She had
been married to a highly respected physician in
Dublin, a Dr. Maturin, who, about half a year
after the marriage, was suddenly removed by
death, resulting from his having performed a
dangerous operation for another doctor. It was
a heart-rending grief, which brought on severe
illness, and Dr. and Mrs. Saphir felt the deepest
sympathy and sorrow. The two following letters
written at the time, with their profound view of
the love of God even in the midst of most bitter
afflictions, may be a comfort to many who have
lost beloved friends. The first is dated Nov. 27: —

"Dearest Leila,

" I need not assure you how deeply we sympathize
with you, and how constantly we have been thinking of you
and your sorrow these last days. . . . We are greatly re-
lieved to hear that you have your dear husband's mother with
you, for no one could sympathize with you so fully at this sad
time. . . . Although in real heart-grief God only can give
consolation and strength, it is a great help to have the com-
panionship of those dear to us. You know that we also, and
your other uncles and aunts, feel with you in this sore trial.

COMFOUTIXG LETTERS TO A NIECE.

You can only be still and silent before God, and wait on Him.
It appears very dark and overwhelming; but we must exercise
faith in Him who is infinitely wise and loving. Only He
can enable you to submit to His will without bitterness. It
is beyond human power, but God can and does by His Spirit
heal broken hearts, and He can comfort where all earthly
consolations are vain. We think of you night and day,
dearest Leila, and we know that you will bear up, and that
God will uphold and strengthen you in this hour of grief and
trial.

'* Your aunt and I long to see you. It would be our
greatest pleasure to have you, and we are if possible more
(|uiet than ever. . . . Whenever you want quiet or change,
only drop us a card at any time ; and it will be always con-
venient and a joy to have you, both to yoiu^ aunt, who loves
you like a daughter, and to me."

The other letter is as follows —

" Dearest Leila,

" We wonder at not hearing from you, and your aunt
is afraid that you did not look on my letter as from her also.
The fact is, she feels too deeply with and for you to write
herself. I can assure you that you are rarely out of her
mind, and tliat nearly every night she lies awake thinking of
you. And I am sure she never forgets you in her prayers.
Indeed I have almost daily to comfort her. You know her
sensitive nature, and that she specially shrinks from writing.
Bat she is full of love to you, and has been watching the post
constantly, to hear from you.

"I also have thought much about you, and I wish I could
liave a quiet talk with you. Although I have not come
through a trial so severe as yours must be, I and your dear
aunt know something of the anguish of losing one in whom
our affections were centred, and whose place nothing can fill
up." (He refers here to the loss of their only child.) "And
as we go on in life we must sooner or later learn what at first
seems a bitter lesson, but is meant to yield peaceable fruits,
and fill the heart with a peace which will never fail. But
there are sore difficulties besetting us in the loneliness of

288 COMFORTING LETTER TO

bereavement. I hear you are regretting the neglect of rertain
things, which might have issued in recovery. Let me assure
you, from a long experience as a minister, that there is scarcely
a death in which survivors have not such regrets. I know
them from my own experience. They are very tei-rible and
gnawing, but, I am sure, they are generally quite false. This,
however, cannot be proved mathematically, (at least some-
times). We must therefore rise to the only true view of
God's supremacy and providence, which embraces every cir-
cumstance and detail, ' If Thou hadst been here,' said the
mourning sister, ' my brother would not have died.' It was
true, in one sense ; but Christ pur[ osely did not go there
after He had received the message, ' He Avhom Thou lovest is
sick.' He wished and purposed that Lazarus should die, that
God's glory in him should be manifested. No mistake of ours
can c )me in reality between God's counsel and love and the
individual ; and all secondary causes and circumstances must
be viewed as orlered by His wisdom, permitted by His will,
and overruled by Llis law.

" Such thoughts must be resisted, dear Leila ; they throw
no light, but utter darkness, on oiu' minds, and fill us with
doubt and distrust Godwards.

" I have often felt perfectly unable to say a word to the
bereaved, knowing the desolateness and sorrow of mourning
hearts. But if I had more love and more faith, how much is
to be said to comfort and to raise the bowed down ! One
thing is clear, that the wretched unbelief and Agnosticism has
NOTHING to say ; no loving Father, no sympathizing Saviour,
no Spirit above, able and yearning to lift up our spirit, no
endless conscious life with Christ and all the Saints, and no
resurrection in the likeness of Ciirist's body.

" But I believe — and this too from my own experience —
that there is no lasting consolation and no true remedy for
such heart-ache as is yours, but our setting our affections
supremely on Christ, and loving God with all our heart, and
finding in Him our bliss and heaven. There is an idolatry
which follows the dear departed ; and yet God's loving purpose
in ALL His dealings with us, is to make us love Him supremely,
and be happy in His love.

.4 WIDOWED NIECE. 280

" Occupation, work even of benevolence, only postpones and
Mdes the great and only step that has to be taken, although
it has its own use, and afterii-ards is strengthening and com-
forting. Believe it, that tlie Love of God in Christ, and a
spiritual life in Him, now on earth and hereafter, are great
realities, though we speak of and realize them so little, that
when they are brought before us we shrink from them as if
they were shadows, and our ordinary life substance.

" And in this renewed and deepened act of faith, God,
knowing all our weakness and sorrows, is full of tenderness,
and knows how to deal with the bruised reed.

'' Job, in his sudden bereavement, remembered that the same
Lord who h;id taken away his children had given them. All
the sunshine and joy of the past was GocVs gift, and does He
change? He is the same loving One in taking as in giving.
Blessed be the Name of the Lord ! His Name, for to us
Christians He is not anonymous, but our Father in Christ.

" If we have — and I know how difficult it is — left all in
God, and believe and submit, then in addition to Himself, God
will give us also the consolation of finding our loved ones
again, when we can never lose them. I have always held that
we cannot love wife, or child, or friend too much, if we love
them imder God, and with God, and in God.

'' But I fear I may have wearied you. All I can add is,
that I hnoio what I have said, and that I have said it with
the truest love and sympathy."

LETTER TO A NORWEGIAN SEA-CAPTAIN ON
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION.

The following letter has been sent to us by a
Norwegian sea-captain, who never saw Dr. Saphir,
but had been greatly impressed by his writings.
He thus describes his own relation to him. The
letter of Dr. Saphir is on the subject of Baptismal
Regeneration. Captain Hoyer writes to us from
Arendal in South Norway, December 13, 1892.

290 NORWEGIAN SEA-CAPTAIN S LETTEFx.

" What gave occasion for me to get a letter from Dr. Saphir
I will tell you. I am a Norwegian sea-captain, and as such
I have had opportunity to get acquainted with his books, and
also been in his church, Ils'otting Hill, in London ; but he was
absent for his health then, and I did not see him. But I
learned to appreciate his writings, and how I love the man,
though I never saw him ! What spiritual food his expositions
are ! — no sentimentalism, but deep, solid, spiritual nourishment
for the soul. I have got most out of his writings, and they
are my choicest readings. Now I was brought up and con-
nected with the Lutheran Church ; but when I came to examine
the sacramental doctrine on Baptismal Regeneration in the
light of God's Word, I had to give it up, and I found the
reformed doctrine more scriptural. My country is all Lutheran
in doctrine except some of the Dissenters, and they stick to it
very strictly, the chief reason for which I may confidently
say is want of enlightenment. So I determined to write a
treatise on the subject, and in order to know what doctrine
such a man as Dr. Saphir held about it, I wrote a letter to
him, and asked him kindly to tell me. This he did. That
letter is to me a real ' love-letter.' . . . One thought seems to
make even heaven more attractive, if I may reverently so speak :
that is, to be able to see and converse up there with men
like Dr. Saphir, so Christ-like, so devoted and saintly, and so
humble and kind and good,"

In a second letter, enclosing Dr. Saphir's, he says :

" I often take, to me, his dear letter to look upon ; I love to
see the words penned by the dear man again and again, and
often when out in foreign countries, exposed to all kinds of
tempations, have I received strength and encouragement, by
recalling to mind such men, and trying to have a kind of,
spiritual companionship with them."

The following is Dr. Saphir's letter to Captain
Hover : —

'' Ilkley, Yorl-sUrr, Jnhi 17, 1S90.
" Dear Captain Hoyer,

'« Many thanks for your kind and most interesting

SAPHIIi'S LETTER TO CAPTAIN IIOYE/?. 291

letter. I should have replied sooner, but my health has
been very bad, the last month. I was obliged to give up all
preaching, reading, Szc, about a month ago, and the doctor
ordered me complete rest for three months. It is a very
severe trial, but the Lord has sent it for some loving and
wise purpose.

" It was like a gleam of sunshine to me to hear of the
Lord's having made use of any of my writings, and it was
kind of you to write me this encouraging fact.

" You will forgive my not entering fully on your question,
as my head is not at all strong. I know little about the
Norwegian Church. Besides some sermons, translated by
Gleiss, and what my friend Mr. Horjohann of Christiana
has told me, I know nothing. I have read some of Heuch's,
and many of Kierkeguard's books. I was greatly interested
to hear of the Free Church. The question of Baptism is very
difficult, and I am very sorry to hear of your troubles. The
unity of the Body is most important and precious ; and every-
thing must be done to preserve its outward manifestation, but,
of course, faithfulness to truth entrusted to us in God's
Word is the first duty.

" I do not hold the doctrine of Baptismal Regeneration ; on
the contrary, I regard it as unscriptural and injurious in its
tendency. But I cannot forget that many of the ministers
and other Christians who hold it, are truly converted, and
fully hold the precious doctrines of justification and the work
of the Spirit. Some of our Reformed theologians have used
the expression ' regeneration ' in connection with baptism,
among them Calvin, and their statement as to the import and
benefit of Baptism is very strong, in emphasizing that it is
more than an emblem or sign. Sometimes regeneration means
with them only the being placed by God in a new position,
and brought into the outward House, in which the blessings
of the New Covenant are received. But I know the Lutheran
idea of Baptismal Regeneration goes beyond this.

" I have often thought that the question of Baptism should
he first considered, as in the case of conscious believers, and not
of infants. The New Testament passages referring to Baptism
seem simple enough, when we apply them to Jews and

292 SAPHIirS LETTER TO CAPTAIN HOYER

heathen, who by the power of God received Jesus, and were
admitted into the Church; with them Baptism was the consum-
mating and culmiijating point of transition from the old
condition to the new, and to such it coukl be said, ' As many
as are baptized, have init on Christ' But to apply the New
Testament passages to Infant Baptism in their full meaning
seems to me an error, and it converts Baptism into a kind
of physical or magical art, necessarily connected with the gift
and work of the Spirit. On the other hand, to explain
Baptism, starting with Infant Baptism, has the tendency of
lowering Baptism into a mere ceremony or emblem, or to lay
an exclusive stress on the subjective aspect of the parents'
act of dedication, and to leave out (as I think the Baptists
do) the much more primary and important objective aspect
of Baptism, something that God gives and does, the seal of
the righteousness by faith, the seal of the Covenant of Grace,
which ever after is a confirmation and consolation to the
believer. In our Church we baptize only the children of
believers, and rest on the promise given to parents for their
children (Acts xvi.), * — Thou shalt be saved, and thy house ' ;
principle all the same, whether infants or intelligent
children. We also assert that the benefit of Baptism is not
confined to the actual time of administration. I have had no
scruple about Infant Baptism ; but difiiculty to steer clear
of a merely ceremonial symbol, and of a ' dedication ' (but
there is no dedication of a sinful being apart from the Atone-
Tiient and the Covenant of Grace) and baptismal regeneration
on the other hand.

" I have not written anything on the subject, which I think
very difiicult and complicated. I like a little book by the
Rev. W. Grant of Ayr ; and 1 believe Candlish on the Sacra-
ments is good, but I don't know it. Also a tract by
W. P. Mackay (Nisbet & Co.), — 'Baptism admission to the
House, not the Body of Christ.' I think in John iii. water
refers to John's baptism ; because at the time Nicodemus
could scarcely avoid understanding it thus. Lutherans do not
consider sufficiently the equally (if not more) important and
emphatic words, amd the Spirit. ' Bath of regeneration '
(Titus) is intelligible in the case of believers, who as such, by

ON BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 293

baptism, were placed in the congregation of new-born children
of God. The passage in Peter lays also stress on the faitJi
and inward experience of the recipient.

*' I suppose you know Beck of TUbingen on the Sacra-
ments. He is very candid in his remarks on Infant Baptism,
and altogether worth consulting.

" The latest Calvinistic dogmatic book by Bohl (a follower
of Kohlbriigge),^ almost justifies the word regeneration as
applied to baptism. Kohlbriigge, whom I regard very highly,
has written on the subject, and his view and also that ex-
pressed by his disciple, Wichelhaus of Halle, in a pamphlet
Die Taufe^ of which Hengstenberg fully approved, ought to
satisfy the EvaDgelical Lutherans, as it secures the objective
character and preciousness of the Sacrament. But I fear it
won't.

" I once spent a fortnight in the house of the late Pastor
Harms of Hermansburg. I can never forget the dear man,
so full of the Spirit. But he was very strong on baptismal
regeneration. I trust the Lord will watch over your church,
and prevent any division. He alone can help you in this
difficulty by an abundant supply of grace, that light and love
may go together and that the work of the gospel be not
hindered.

" Excuse this unstudied letter on so momentous a subject,
but my health makes anything else impossible, and you will
kindly look upon this as a merely extempore expression of my
thoughts.

" May the Lord bless and guide you ! AYe have many
difficulties at present in our churches, and the Lord's servants
and witnesses need much grace and strength.

" With Christian regards and earnestly requesting an
iuterest in your intercessions,
*'Iam,

*' Yours, very faithfully,

''A*! Saphir."

1 Rechtfertigimg an den glauhen : Amsterdam and Leipzig.

294

CHAPTEK XXIV.

DEVOTION TO THE JEWS AND JEWISH MISSION.

Love to Israel of Moses and of Paul — Pauline Doctrine of
Israel's unchanging Position — What was Israel's Glory?
— Israel's Present Condition — Prophecies fulfilled, and
Prophecies to be fulfilled — The Future of Israel bright and
glorious — Israel's Claim upon the Gentile Churches — The
Everlasting Nation — What will be accomplished through
Israel — The Pabinowich and Lichtenstein Movements —
Pev. C. A. Hchunberger — Delitzsch's early Interest in the
Jews — His Revival of Jewish Missions in Germany — Mr.
Schonberger's Visits to Lichtenstein and Rabinowich — The
Establishment of the Pabinowich Council, with Saphir as
President — His Great Interest in the Work — Jubilee of
the Scottish Jewish Mission — Address at Mildmay Jewish
Conference.

THOSE ticquaiiited with Saphir's works know the
phice which his own nation, Israel, had in his
lieart, and the most important destiny which, from
the study of the Scriptures, he considered to be
still before it. He was intensely interested in tlie
Jewish mission, and he lost no opportunity in
seeking to advance its claims. On the days of the
Jewish annual collection^ he always pleaded the
cause with earnestness and power, — and every

' ^ An annual collection is taken for Jewish missions in the
English Presbyterian Church, on the third Sunday in January.

LOVE TO ISRAEL 01^ MOSES AND OE PAUL. 295

spiritual work cUiiong the Jews lie watched with
interest. He was especially interested in the
movements of Rabinowich and of Liclitenstein,
which point to a national Jewish Church, accept-
ino' Christ as the Messiah of the nation. He
took a most active part in getting help for Rabin-
owich, being the moving spirit of the Committee
formed for the purpose ; and had much correspond-
ence with his esteemed and always devoted friend,
Professor Delitzsch, on the subject. Delitzsch
moved in Germany, and Saphir in England. De-
litzsch and Faber, in a preface to a new edition of
his tract, ' Wer ist der Apostat?^ speak of the great
assistance given to them in their work for Israel by
Saphir, for many years.

We begin our notice of this devotion to Israel,
by quoting from a sermon preached in 1878 : —

" Pre-eminent among the saints of God, of whom
we read in the Holy Scriptures, are Moses, the
servant of Jehovah, who was faithful in all God's
house ; and Paul, the Apostle and the Gentile, who
was able to say, ' Be ye followers of me, even as I
am of Christ.' When we think of these two chosen
vessels of God, of their wisdom, their meekness,
their self-sacrifice, their zeal for God's glory, their
unwearied and ardent love, their sufferings, their
patience ; when we recall their tears, their words,
their labours, their prayers, we feel so amazed at
the grandeur of their characters and lives, that we
are lifted above the lower sentiments of admiration,
and above the common expressions of eulogy, and

!96 THE LOVE TO ISRAEL

we can only glorify God in them. As when we
stand before a majestic Alpine height, or gaze on a
bright and beautiful star, we say, 'How great is
God's power, how beautiful are His works, how
wonderful is His glory ! '

'' Moses and Paul show that love of God and
love to man are one ; that he who stands highest
on the Mount of God, and sees most of the glory
of God, has the deepest compassion, the most burn-
ing love, the tenderest sympathy towards his
brethren. Moses in his anguish said, ' Blot me out
of Thy book.' He could not bear the thought of
Israel's rejection. Paul, in the intensity of his
affection and sorrow, could offer the same petition.
We are not able to measure such depth of love
man ward, because w^e cannot understand the height
of this love God ward. We listen in silence.

" Love to Israel, such as Moses and Paul felt, is
a ray from that ineffable stream of light which is in
God. The Apostle, when he speaks of his great
grief on account of Israel's unbelief, is conscious
that this feeling is not merely one of natural
patriotism and affection, but of the Spirit, by
virtue of his union with Christ. ' I say the
truth in Christ, my conscience also bearing me
witness in the Holy Ghost.' He who referred all
feelings of true and tender love to the indwelling
of God's Spirit, who longed after the Philippiaus in
the bowels of Jesus Christ, is clearly conscious that
His love to Israel is Christ-sprung, God-given,
Spirit- breathed ; it is the Saviour's mind and affec-

OF MOSES AXD OF PAUL. 2^:

tion living in his heart. Behold with the eyes of
Paul, Jesus Christ still weeping over Jerusalem.

" Much," he continued, " as Paul loved the Gen-
tiles, he never forgot his people ; he continually
mourned over the unbelief and bondage of the
chosen people of God ; and he continued steadfast
in the sure hope that all Israel should be saved,
and that the promises given to the fathers would
be fulfilled, for the gifts and calling of God are
without repentance. . . . Slowly is the Church
returning to the Pauline doctrine of Israel's un-
changing position in the kingdom of God, and
of Israel's future conversion and restoration.
Their sins, though red as scarlet, culminating in
the crucifixion of the Holy One. shall yet be for-
o-iveu, and the love of God shall visit them with
everlasting redemption. . . . Out of the fallen race of
Adam He chose Israel to be His son. His first-born.
' Ye are the children of the Lord your God,' said
Moses. ' Out of Egypt has He called my son,'
said Hosea. He adopted them by grace to be His
family, beloved and cared for and watched over by
Jehovah, as their Father. Theirs also was the glory,
not in the sense that they had anything wherein
to glory. The nations of this world speak much
and proudly of their glory ; Free England, Beautiful
France, the Great Fatherland, — all nations have a
glory, of which they boast. Not so Israel, for God
often reminded them that they were chosen accord-
ing to grace, not by reason of any excellence and
merit they possessed. What was Israel's glory ?

298 ISRAEL'S ACTUAL CONDITION.

It was God's glory which belonged to them. The
manifestation of God was given to them. While
the nations were in darkness, the bright light of
God's favour visited Israel. Theirs are the cove-
nants. To them pertains the giving of the law.
To them pertains the service. To them pertain the
promises. Theirs are the fathers. Of them, as
concerning the flesh, came Christ, the Lord.

'' How great and how painful is the contrast
when we look from the high position and blessings
God gave to Israel, to their actual condition of un-
belief and darkness ! For as Jesus is the centre of
Israel, their life, light, and glory, death has been
the consequence of their rejection of Jehovah, mani-
fest. Therefore are they compared to dead bones,
very many and very dry. They are dead, because
Jehovah, God manifest, is the Life, the Spirit of
the nation, and in rejecting Jesus they have for-
saken the fountain of their life, the strength and
substance of their existence. Behold their house is
left unto them desolate ! What is their house ?
Jerusalem and the pleasant land. It is trodden
underfoot of the Gentiles. What is their house,
their dwelling-place ? The Scriptures ? Behold
they read Moses and the Prophets, wearily, blindly ;
they wander to and fro in the sacred record, but
the veil is on their hearts, and as they do not dis-
cern Messiah of whom the Scriptures testify, they
find no light and peace there. Their house is left
unto them desolate. What is their house ? Their
beautiful Sabbaths, and festivals, the lovely Passover

THE FUTURE OF ISRAEL. 299

Pentecost, Feast of Tabernacles, their solemn Day
of Atonement ! Alas ! where is the Lamb which
God has chosen, the blood of sprinkling for the
remission of sins, the high priest to enter into the
Holy of Holies ? They dwell in a desolate house,
and cannot find rest for their souls, and cannot see
the beauty of the Lord. Their house is left deso-
late ; Jerusalem is trodden down of the Gentiles ;
the Scripture and the services are to them empty
and void, without power and without peace.
Ichahod, the glory has departed ; Israel's glory, the
Shechinah ; for the glory of God is beheld only in
the fiice of His Son Jesus Christ. . . .

'' Israel, scattered among the nations, is a witness
for God. They are the fulfilment of prophecy, the
monuments of God's faithfulness and truth. No
greater evidence for the truth of Scripture can
be given than the existence and history of the
Jews. Frederick the Great said one day, before a
large company of sceptics and unbelievers, to his
general, Ziethen, whose courage and loyalty were
as well known as his simple faith and piety : * Give
us a good argument to prove Christianity, but
something; short and convincino'.' ' The Jews, your
Majesty,' replied the veteran, and the company was
silent.

"The future of Israel is bright and glorious, and
bound up with the manifestation of Christ the
Lord. Hence it has a special place in the Chris-
tian heart. We cannot regard the Jewish mission
as one among many missions. The nation has a

300 ISRAELS CLAIM UPON GENTILES.

position, central and unique, according to the
Divine purpose. We cannot measure the import-
ance of the Jewish mission by the numerical great-
ness either of the nation or of converts ; we measure
it by the value assigned to them in the Scriptures ;
by the decisive love with which God regards them ;
and by the special influences which tliey are to
exert upon the whole world. . . . God's promise
teaches us, that through the restoration of Israel
the golden era of the world will be ushered in. . . .
" When you think of the Q;race that has brouoht
salvation to you, remember Israel, the nation of
grace. When you think of the sweet sound of the
name Jesus, remember it is a Hebrew name —
Jehoshua, Saviour. When you think of departed
saints and the heavenly city, remember that it is
Jerusalem, in which as an emblem God hath shown
you the eternal home. When after your petitions
you utter the word so full of consolation and hope,
— Amen, remember it is Israel who hath taught you
the God Amen, who is the Hearer of prayer. And
when, overwhelmed with joy and praise, you abound
with thanksgiving to the God who hath done great
marvels, and say Hallelujah, remember that Israel
was the first, and shall again be the foremost, in
the o^reat chorus of nations. . . . Israel's con-
version will be a marvel of omnipotent love.
When Ezekiel beheld the valley full of dry bones,
and was asked, ' Son of man, can these bones
live ? ' he felt that with man it was impossible,
and in humility of faith he replied, ' Thou, Lord,

'THE EVERLASTING NATION: 301

knowest.' Yes, in their graves they shall hear the
voice of God. He who can raise the dead and call
them out of their graves, shall send forth His
Spirit and breathe upon the dry bones, and they
shall live, and stand up an exceeding great army.
" Let us give then our aid to the Jewish mission,
in faith, in love, in hope, and let us seek to enter
into the mind of God, and to look forward to that
great promise which all the fathers embraced, and
held fast even unto the end. May there be given
unto us also, out of that wonderful and infinite
ocean of Divine love to Israel, a little love to God's
ancient people. Amen."

In a sermon preached at Belgravia on January
18, 1885, and published under the title, 'The
Everlasting Nation,' he says : —

"Jesus came to the whole nation; Israel as a
nation rejected him. Jesus, as we read in the
Gospel of Matthew, w^as taking leave of the whole
nation. He spoke to the Pharisees; He spoke to the
Herodians ; He spoke to the Sadducees ; and after
having given, as it were, the last word unto each
representative part of the Jewish nation. He sums
up all in that heart-rending farewell : — ' Jerusalem,
Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest
them that are sent unto thee, how often would I
have gathered thy children ' — the whole nation as
a nation — * under My wings, and ye would not !
Behold, your house shall be left unto you desolate.'
But the farewell is not for ever. It is a farewell

302 ISRAEL TO BE SAVED FINALLY.

only for a given and definite period. ' Ye shall
not see Me, till ye shall say, Blessed is He that
cometh in the name of the Lord ! ' The Saviour,
ere He was crucified upon Golgotha, had in His
own loving and sorrowing heart the living and
assured hope that the same nation, which as a
nation had rejected Him, would again as a nation
welcome Him as the Messiah that cometh in the
Name of the Lord. And after He had died upon
the cross, and appeared again to His disciples,
before He ascended up into heaven, He ratified to
the apostles the promise that was given of old,
that He would come and restore the kiugdom to
Israel ; only not at the present time, because the
dispensation of the Church had to intervene.
Thus it is in harmony with the testimony of Jesus,
which is the spirit of prophecy, that the Apostle
Paul declares that all Israel shall be saved.

''But as all Israel shall be saved finally, in the
meantime God has not totally rejected His people.
This the Apostle proves in the simplest and most
obvious manner. If God had totally rejected His
people, the prayer of Jesus on the cross, ' Father,
forgive them; for they know not what they do,'
would not have been answered. The prayer of
Stephen before his death, * Lord, lay not this sin
to their charge,' wouLl have remained without a
divine response. Paul himself is the most striking
illustration that God had not totally rejected His
people ; for God had mercy on him, and revealed
unto him His Son. We read of 3000 at Jerusalem,

ISRAEL'S FUTURE RESTORATION. 30S

and afterwards 5000, and afterwards many myriads
or ten thousands of Jews who had come to the
knowledge of Christ. And during the first centuries
the number and importance of Jewish Christian
eonoreoations, who to a certain extent still ob-
served the law of Moses, and in whom there
lived the vivid consciousness of their connection
with the Old Testament history, were considerable.
Finally, all Israel shall be saved, and during the
intermediate period of the Church God has not
totally rejected His people."

"Two points are thus given to us in the Apostolic
teaching — Israel's rejection of the Messiah, and
Israel's future restoration. In the destruction of
eTerusalem and the temple, and in the dispersion of
Israel among the nations, was manifested in actual
history what to the eye of faith appeared already
at the crucifixion of our Lord, when the veil of the
temple was rent in twain. The arch of Titus, still
to be seen at Eome, declares to the whole world
what believers knew from the written Word — that
divine judgment has fallen upon the nation on
account of their unbelief. If we ask what, con-
nection subsists between unbelieving Israel of the
past and restored Israel of the future, between
Jerusalem given into the hands of the Gentiles and
Jerusalem restored, there are three facts which ac-
cording to the divine Word bridge over the interval.
In the first place, according to the Word of God,
it is obviously necessary that the Jewish nation
should remain in existence as a nation until these

304 ISRAEL'S PROSPECTS.

latter days. Their enemies must not succeed in
destroying them ; their friends must not succeed in
so favourino: them that they amalojamate through

O JO o

indifference and worldliness \Yith the other nation-
alities. And also it is necessary that they should
not be absorbed by the Christian Churches, so as
to cease to exist as a separate community. How
marvellously has all this been fulfilled every one
can see, in the countries of Europe and of the Avhole
world, where God has scattered His people. . . ."

"As at the first advent, through the rejection
of Jesus the gospel came to the Gentiles, so at the
second advent of Jesus He will be received by
Israel when He brings judgment upon apostate
Christendom. . . . Through the Church indi-
viduals are gathered out from among all the
nations to believe in Jesus ; but it is through the
nation of Israel that national Christianity will l)e
established upon the whole face of the earth."

THE RABINOWICH AND LICHTENSTEIN MOVEMENTS.

We would here, as bearino- on the Rabinowich
movement in which Saphir was so much inter-
ested, give a sketch of the manner in which that
interest was excited simultaneously, in Saphir and
Delitzsch : —

In 1871 Johanna Saphir, the youngest sister of
Adolph, was married to the Rev. C. A. Schonberger,
a Jewish missionary, first of the Free Church of
Scotland, and afterwards of tlie British Society for
the Propagation of the Gospel among the Jews.

MB. SCUONBERGER. 305

Mr. Schonberger had, when a young man, been
converted under the influence of old Mr. Saphir in
Pesth, with whom he remained up to the time of
his death. He then went to the Mission House at
Bale for a year, and afterwards to London, wdiere
he attended classes in the English Presbyterian
College, for a session. He next went to Germany,
and completed there his theological studies, under
the direction of the w^ell-known Professor Delitzsch,
w^ho took an intense interest in the Jews and in
Jewish missions.

Delitzsch, when a ]r)rivat-docent in Leipzig, had
been brought into contact with Jewish missionaries
of the London Society, and from that time had
been convinced of the importance of w^ork among
the Jews. He himself also had received special
kindness from a Jew, w^ho helped him in his edu-
cation. We may note that in later years this Jew
became a convert to Christianity, under Delitzsch's
influence. There had been a Jewish mission in
Germany in the latter part of last century, but it
had been extinguished by the progress of rational-
ism in the German Churches. Delitzsch used
strong efi*ort, and with much success, to revive the
interest in the Jewish work. He trained many
students for it, and exerted himself in every way
to promote it. Chief among his eff'orts was the
translation into Hebrew of the New Testament, in
w^hich he took a leading part. He prepared also
commentaries for the Jews, and wrote many tracts
and also pamphlets in connection with the anti-

306 DELITZSCH AND SCHONBERGER.

Semitic movement, in which he exposed the false
statements circulated against the Jews ; and he
founded anew the Institutum Judaicum, which
has branches in many of the German universities.
Delitzsch had a great admiration for Saphir, and
was latterly in frequent communication with him,
in regard to the Eabinowich and Lichtenstein
movements, in which both were deeply interested.

Delitzsch had taken a special interest in Schon-
berger when a student, frequently visiting him in
his lodgings. He afterwards, to the end of his
life, corresponded with him on the Jewish work.
Schonberger finished his studies in 1868, and went
for a year or two to Pesth to assist Mr. Koenig
and Mr. Moody. When married he was settled in
Prague, where he remained till 1884 in connection
with the British Society for the Propagation of the
Gospel among the Jews. Old Mrs. Saphir lived
there with her daughter till her death in 1879.

Mr. Schonberger has been one of the most
eminent and successful of Jewish missionaries.
He was in Prague for thirteen years till 1884.
He had much influence over Jews — especially of
the intelligent classes. Among^ his converts there
was one who became a very effective minister, tlie
Eev. A. Venetianer, Pastor of the Reformed Church
in Rohrbach, South Russia, also two medical
men, two merchants, and two teachers. In 1884
he went to Vienna as a missionary of the same
Society, where he laboured till 1890, during which
period seventy converts were baptized by him.

RABINOWICH'S INFLUENCE. 3^07

In Vienna he preached often to the German
Protestant congregations with great acceptance.

He made extensive mission tours through Galicia
and other provinces. He visited Rabbi Lichten-
stein in Tapio-Szele, Hungary, who, from the
perusal of tracts of Delitzsch, had become convinced
that Jesus was the Messiah, and w^ho was declaring
his faith in Him, while still Chief Rabbi, both in
sermons and writings. Many of the Jews were
convinced by his statements, while others became
hostile. It was a new thing in the history of
Judaism for a Jewish Rabbi to preach in the
synagogue that Jesus was the Christ. Mr. Schon-
berger visited also Rabinowich at Kischinefi' in
Bessarabia, and did much to stimulate him in his
work there. His first visit took place in 1885,
when he felt greatly delighted and encouraged by
his intercourse with him. His report was the
means of making the movement better known.
Two years later he visited him again by request of
the Rabinowich Council, which had then been
formed in London, under the presidency of Dr.
Saphir. In this visit he was accompanied by Mr.
Venetianer. They found that the attendance at
his services was as large as ever, and that Rabin-
owich's influence had become far-reachino; — '"' Jews
from all parts of the vast Empire of Russia reading
his pamphlets, discussing his position and testi-
mony, and corresponding with him, or visiting
him personally, to hear more fully the divine
message he proclaims." The Jews in Kischineft*

308 SAPHIK;6 DEEP INTEREST IN

had now accepted the fact that there was in the
midst of them a Jewish synagogue, in which one
of their bretliren, of unblemished character and
eminent gifts, proclaimed every Sabbath that Jesus
was the Messiah promised to their fathers, and tlie
Saviour of the w^orld.

Mr. Venetianer's visit to Kischineff resulted in
the solution of one difficulty, the solving of which
was urgent. Being the pastor of an evangelical
church, recognized in Russia, he was able to baptize
those who desired baptism. He wrote : — " On
October 2, 1887, was held a missionary festival.
Thousands assembled, and I baptized the first
Kischineff convert." K fortnight later he baptized
three daughters of Eabinowich.

Mr. Leitner, another convert of Mr. Schonberger,
now in Constantinople, visited Kischineff soon
after, and gave the same encouraging view of the
work.

This work deeply interested Dr. Saphir and
Professor Delitzsch, because it seemed to give
promise of a wide national movement in the future.
•' It must be viewed," said Dr. Saphir, " in con-
nection with the present condition of the Jewish
nation, and the light of the prophetic Word. A
crisis is evidently approaching. Tahnudism and
the attempt to modernize Judaism, and to reduce
it to rationalistic Deism, have both fjiiled, and have
proved themselves to be without vitality ; and yet
the national consciousness has been roused by the
recent anti-Semitic movement. The Jewish mission

THE RABimnVICH COUNCIL. 309

has been abundantly blessed, to a greater extent
than is generally believed, not merely in con-
versions, but in spreading the knowledge of
Scriptural and vital Christianity among the Jews,
and circulating the New Testament. ' Is Jesus
the Messiah and Lord ? ' is not so much a question
between the Christinn Church and the Jews, as in
the first instance a Jewish question ; but appears
therefore as an indication — a foreshadowing of a
national movement, when we hear of Jews (how-
ever few in number) who have come to the con-
clusion that their dispersion and condition during
the last eighteen centuries is the consequence of
their rejection of Jesus — that Jesus is the promised
Messiah, Son of David, and King of Israel ; that
the writings of evangelists and apostles are the
continuation of the Divine record entrusted to the
Fathers."

Delitzsch, speaking of the movement, says,
Eabinowich seems to be a church historical phe-
nomenon, which revives our hope of Israel's ulti-
mate conversion to their Messiah. Though not
unacquainted with the dogmatic confession of
Christian Churches, his type of teaching is Jewish-
Christian, and his whole mode of viewing and
expressing truth is original, being drawn directly
from the Apostolic Word, with individual freshness.

The Council formed in London to aid this
work, which was constituted after Mr. Schonberger
had given his report of his first visit, and at his
suggestion we believe, was, under Dr. Saphir's

310 THE RABINOWICH MOVEMENT.

guidance, enabled to help the work very materially.
It is now presided over by Mr. J. E. Mathieson.
At the beginning, in a few days, Saphir raised for
it £800. There was no work dearer to his heart.
Let us hope with him that it is the beginning of a
great movement which will affect Judaism in all
parts of the world. Other movements of a similar
kind have since begun, in other countries. The
general attitude of the Jews to Christ is different
from what it has been at any time since Christ
appeared. They no longer despise or hate Him,
but rather glory in Him as a Jew. There may
thus be a sudden acceptance on the part of
multitudes of Jews, ere long, of His true Messiah-
ship.

Of the Eabinowich movement Dr. Saphir says in
a letter : —

"The movement among the Jews in the South of Russia
has entered into a new phase. I had a most interesting letter
from dear Professor Delitzsch. He says he is quite ' electriified '
by the tidings. The Russian Government and the Holy Synod
have sanctioned the movement, and allowed the Jews to form
a Community called ' Israelites of the New Testament.' They
are to have their own synagogue, with the Hebrew Bible (Old
and New Testament bound together). Last Wednesday I
addressed more than one hundred people in Mrs. Wingate's
drawing-room on the subject."

Dr. Saphir gives in a letter the following narrative
of Eabinowich —

" A Jewish advocate in the South of Russia wrote some
years ago in Russian Hebrew periodicals about the moral and
social condition of the Jews, the state of the Rabbis, &c., very
high-toned. Then he weut to Palestine, at the time of the

SAPHTR'S NARRATIVE OF RABINOWIGH. 311

Russian persecution, and returned with this result : ' There
is no hope for Israel but by restoring our Brother Jesus'
H'S creed is very remarkable. He sees that the dealings of
God with Israel culminate in Jesus, whom he regards as the
Messiah, King David, Angel of the Covenant, (fee. ; that the
New Testament is of Divine authority ; that righteousness is by
faith ; that Christ's Death and Resurrection are the foundation
of our life ; that Israel is punished for its rejection of Christ,
and the Gentiles brought in ; and that there will be a national
recognition of Christianity, apart from the creeds and organiz-
ations of the Gentiles ; and the Sabbath and other parts of the
law he thinks Jewish Christians ought to observe, not for
justification, but as national ordinances. Of course he never
dreams of Gentiles doing it, and if Jewish Christians do not
observe them, he does not judge them. He has gathered a
small congregation, and they are building a synagogue, and
circulating Hebrew New Testaments. Pastor Faltin, in Kisch-
ineff (an old saint), was in former years wonderfully blessed
among the Jews. The Rabbi of the town was converted
through him, and is now a Christian minister in North Russia,
F. never thought of the Jew^s till a Christian woman in his
church, who had been praying for the Jews for eighteen years
before, said to him one day, * Do not forget the thousands of
Jews in this place.' It is a most striking illustration of the
fact that all movements of the Church originate in prayer,
and often in the prayer of simple Christians, who by faith
have a deeper insight into God's ways than the more learned.
Delitzsch is greatly excited, dear old man ! What an example
he is of humility and love. All the Jewish work he does is in
addition to his University and Church duties ; he is Kirchen-
rath. But it is impossible to see the position of the Jews in
the Bible without feeling bound to the missions ; and how any
one can believe the Bible as a true history — and not in the
Jewish position, I can't conceive. But I believe this is part
of the offence of the cross. . . . Contrary to all my expecta-
tions, my Ganz Israel has been so well received in Germany
that a very large edition is exhausted, and it will be re-issued
and also translated into Danish."

312 SCOTTISH MISSION JUBILEE.

On May 24, 1889, the Jubilee Year of the
Scottish Jewish Mission, there was a special meet-
ing during the General Assembly of the Free
Church of Scotland, to which Dr. Saphir was
earnestly invited. It w\as a great gathering, at
which the Rev. Dr. Wilson of the Barclay Church,
Convener, the Kev. Dr. Robert Smith of Corsock,
missionary at Pestli in former days, the Rev. Dr.
Andrew A. Bonar, and one or tw^o Jewish mis-
sionaries, gave addresses. Dr. Saphir thus referred
to his own conversion and baptism : —

''It is forty-six years this month of May since, in common
with my clear father, then more than sixty years old, and my
mother, my brother, and three sisters, I was baptized into
the holy name of our covenant God. That day shines forth
in my memory above all other days of my life — a day of
intense solemnity, sweetest peace, and most childlike assurance
of the love of God in Christ Jesus, which bound all the
members of my family in a new and clear unity. Thovigh I
am only eight years older than your Mission, I have the most
rivid remembrance of its earliest beginnings. I remember
seeing that venerable and loving man Dr. Keith when, on his
return from Palestine, he visited my father, and the strong
impression which he made on his mind. 1 still possess the
English Bible which he gave to him. I remember the first
meeting of my father with Dr. Duncan. It was in a book-
seller's shop, and, by a strange coincidence, which my father
pointed out to me, just after he had bought a work containing
the fierce attack of a pantheist on Christianity. I remember
the first Sunday services held in the hotel for the English
residents at Pesth, when Dr. Duncan and Mr. Smith and Mr.
Wingate expounded the Scriptures. The subsequent meetings,
both in English and in German, are distinctly in my recollec-
tion, so simple and outwardly unattractive, but so full of light
and power, bringing the message of the love of God to eager
listeners, I was present at the baptism of Alfred Edersheim,

SAPBIRS SPEECH AT THE JUBILEE. 313

who only a few weeks ago fell asleep in Jesus after having
rendered valuable service to theological literature, which will
also be of use in Jewish work. I remember the baptism of
Tomory, a missionary who has for more than forty years
laboured faithfully among Israel. I cannot dwell on these
memories, or attempt to describe the solemnity, the intense
conviction of sin, the abundant joy in redemption, the great
love and brotherly unity, which characterized that year of
revival which so soon followed your first effort to send the
gospel to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. It was the
love of Christ that constrained you ; but you would have had
no faith and courage to found the Jewish Mission had it not
been for your firm belief in God's word of promise, and for
the unwavering and simple faith, without mental reservation,
in the Divine authority of the Old and New Testaments which
characterized your Church. Indeed, no mission to the Jews
can have any vitality and permanence unless it is based on full
and simple faith in the whole Word of God, from the first
chapter of Genesis to the last of Kevelation : in the Old
Testament, which is Jewish and yet as cosmopolitan as the
Xew ; and the New, wliich, with all its universality, lays as
much stress as the Old on the peculiar and never-changing
position of Israel."

Letters were read from Dr. Moody Stuart and
others, among them one from Delitzsch, very happy
in its closing allusion : —

" Smith, Duncan, and Wingate went out from Scotland to
witness to the Jews that the Crucified was truly their King,
the King Messiah, the Servant of the Lord, ' by whose stripes
we are healed.' They went forth, and the Lord Jesus went
with them, and the pleasure of the Lord prospered in their
hands. Buda-Pest showed in a striking way that there is
a remnant in Israel, according to the election of grace — a
remnant, according to the promise of Sion's Bestorer — ' I will
lay the foundation with sapphires. ' "

Dr. Saphir enjoyed his visit to Edinburgh much,

X

3U SAPHIRS ADDRESS AT MILDMAY FAkR

though he was much struck with the changes that
had taken place in Scottish religious opinions.

At the Jewish Convention, held in Mildmay Park
ill 1889, he delivered an address on the Jewish
Mission, which set forth very forcibly its history
and claims and present prosj^ects. He said : —

The Jewish mission is of comparatively recent
date. The Early Church soon lost the true under-
standing of the Old Testament. In the Mediaeval
Church the interest in the Jew was extremely
limited. There was a paganizing of Christianity
— an image worship, &c., which was especially
obnoxious to the Jews. Bernard of Clairvaux,
who of all Church Fathers came nearest to the
Reformers, set before the Church that Israel was
still beloved, and that the time was coming for
her restoration. But the Jews were generally
persecuted. Luther turned his attention to the
Jews ; and many attempts did he make both to
show to the Christian Church the position of
Israel, as his famous tract shows, which is entitled
Jesus was horn a Jeiv^ and also to argue with
the Jews, and to convince them that that which
they were most earnestly seeking had come 'already,
and was treasured up in the Person of Jesus, but
he was not able fully to meet that which was true
in the objection of the Jews, the tenacity with
which they held the promise given to the fathers,
and their national position in looking forward
to the realization of that great kingdom which

ON JEWISH MISSIONS. 315

has its centre in the throne of David. Then in

impatience he gave up all efforts, and thought

that it was of no use, and that they were

altogether a rejected people. Since the middle of

last century Christians have taken an interest in

the people of Israel ; but always those who not

merely thoroughly and cordially, and without any

reservation believed in the Divine authority of the

Scriptures from Genesis down to the book of

the Apocalypse, but who accepted the scriptural

teaching that Israel was God's nation, and that,

though set aside for a time, there were still promises

which must surely be fulfilled to them ; and that

that nation had a future before it, when God

Himself should interfere, and in a way wliich

perhaps we are not able to understand, show forth

His power and His goodness, and bring them again

unto Himself in their own land. The interest in

Jewish missions will soon decay unless grounded on

the Word of God.

Even the most shallow reader of Scripture must
make a difierence between the Jews and the other
nations. Their past history, the wonderful reve-
lation which God gave to their fathers, the wonder-
ful acts which He did for them, show this. The
whole Scripture was written by Jewish hands.
Jesus was of the seed of David, of the seed of
Abraham. The Jewish mission of the present day
is especially in harmony with the characteristic
feature of the present stage of the Church and
the world. The Mediaeval Church did not possess

316 SAPHIRS ADDRESS ON JEWISH MISSIONS.

sufficient gospel light ; the Keformation Church did
not possess sufficient prophetic light to go to the
Jews. The great battle-field at present is the Old
Testament. Never mind the apparent results, the
difficulties, and the destructive criticism.

The end of this conflict is sure. The Old Testa-
ment and the New are one. The w^iole Old Testa-
ment, the friend of the mission to the heathen,
says : '*The idols shall be utterly destroyed." The
New Testament says : "All Israel shall be saved."
The Jewish mission has reached another stage, on
account of the peculiar change which has come
over Israel. When Israel rejected the key which
alone is able to open the wonderfully complicated
lock, the Old Testament, their own history, and the
promises which God had given to them, it could
not be otherwise but that they should invent other
keys, and these keys had as it were to force the
wards of the lock. Rabbinism for a number of
centuries kept the Jews in its iron grip, but Rab-
binism and Talmudism have become effete. What
has been substituted for them ? Monotheism, but
not Jehovahism ; the idea of the unicity of God,
but not the knowledsfe of the livino- and the lovino^

o o o

God. Monotheism is not able to satisfy the
conscience, or give peace and joy to the heart, and,
therefore, there are in Israel multitudes who are
poor in spirit, who are hungering and thirsting, who
have the consciousness that they are blind and
miserable and wretched, and who are lono^ing; after
the living water that will satisfy the craving of

HE LONQ^ FOR UTS NATIVE LAND. 317

tlieir soul. Their attitude to the person of Jesus
has been changed ; and to the New Testament.
Formerly they would not touch it, but many
thousands now read it. Eabinowich is a wonder-
ful sign of the times, and the message which, as
a Jew, he brings to the Jews, that Jesus is our
Brother whom we sold into Egypt, has awakened
a marvellous echo. The Jews have entered into
a new phase. The field is prepared.

Saphir's intense interest in the Jewish mission,
and devotion to it, continued to increase to the end.
One of the last wishes he expressed, during the few
days that intervened between the death of his wife
and his own death, was to return, at all events for
a time, to his native Hungary, to visit the missions
there, and to strengthen the hands of his Jewish
brethren in the faith.

318

CHAPTEE XXV.

CLOSING DAYS.

Residence at Netting Hill — Services sought — Many Afflictions
— Visit to Bournemouth — Happy Ministry there — Letter on
Lux Mundi — Return Home — Last Sermon— Mrs. Saphir's
Death — His Letters in regard to her Death and Funeral
— His own Sudden Death and Funeral — Rev. R. Taylor's
Funeral Address — Testimony of Rev. C. H. Spurgeon and
others — Inscription on the Tombstone.

DE. SAPHIE resigned his charge at Halkin Street
in April 1888, and from that time to his
death, three years later, he had no charge ; but he
continued to reside at Notting Hill. In the winter
of 1888-89 he gave the Lectures, of which we have
spoken, at St. John's Presbyterian Church, Allen
Street, Kensington. His services were frequently
sought after. He preached in different churches.
In this period there was often much depression.
There were many afflictions. He felt deeply the
death of the Eev. John Kelly of the Eeligious Tract
Society, a friend of many years standing. Two of
Mrs. Saphir's sisters died, and Miss Cavendish passed
away. These events made a deep impression on
the Saphirs, and seemed to give them a kind of
foreboding that death was not very far off. Mrs,

HAPPY MINISTRY AT BOURNEMOUTH. 310

Saphir became much more fragile, and her state
caused him at times great anxiety.

There was however a gleam of bright sunshine
before the end. He gloried in the preaching
of the gospel, and he was most joyful, at every
period of his ministry, when his labours were
appreciated and effective. The Rev. J. W. Rodger
of Bournemouth had to leave his work for a time
on account of his health; and he arrani^ed with Dr.
Saphir to take his place for the winter of 1890-91.
Many old friends rallied round him there, and
many, who had not known him before, were
attracted. The church, which is a most prosperous
one, was filled, and much blessing resulted from
his ministry. It recalled to Dr. Saphir the old
days of Greenwich, and his first years at Notting
Hill, and his heart was filled with joy. He often
took one or two other services in the week, besides
that of the Sabbath morning, for which alone he
was responsible.

He thus wrote to Mr. Grant AVilson on December
23, 1890 :—

We are grieved to hear of your daughter's long and severe
illness. We hope she, and you, and Mrs. Wilson will soon be
sensible of the good effects of St. Leonard's. The weather is
still unfavourable to invalids. My dear wife has scarcely been
out of the house for the last month, and she has felt languid
and deprfssed. I am thankful to say, though I do not feel
stronger, I have greatly enjoyed the services here, and felt
much encouraged by the audiences. I had a service this
morning, and a collection for the Jews. The people are very
kind. I have had a good many " eclectics," specially Church

320 LETTER TO GRANT WILSON.

of England. I don't know whether you noticed in 27ie
Christian two short paragraphs about my services, and extracts
from sermons. Mr. Rodger and Session and people urge me
very much to stay till the end of March ; but I have yielded only
to remain all January. My dear wife's health does not seem
to be improving. All the people T have spoken to like Mr.
Rodger's preaching very much. McNeill preached here on
Wednesday afternoon. He has great power, no doubt. I like
him in private ; he is very simple and frank. Lady Grant
came here for three Sundays. We were greatly cheered by
her visit. Mr. Grubb, the great Church of England missioner
in Australia and India, told me he had made great use of my
book on Conversion in his missionary work. The Presbyterian
Church here has a good position, but it depends exclusively
on the minister's energy. . . But I must conclude. The year
has had many sorrows and many mercies. May we be per-
mitted to enter on the new year with every needful grace, and
with calm hope !

His latest ministry at Bournemouth (says Mr. Grant
Wilson) seemed a sort of renewal of the Greenwich days ;
devout people from all communions rallying to him, and
delighting in his ministry. The place he did not care for ; it
did not, he thought, suit him or his wife; but his heart rejoiced
in his work. It seemed to me like a glorious sunset, vouch-
safed by His Master to His faithful servant. Then how soon
after came the close ! We had been much in his prayers,
as our only daughter lay in grievous sickness ; her life ti-em-
bling in the balance for many months. Out of this valley of
the shadow of death I wrote to him, the moment I heard of his
wife's death, pressing him to come to us at St. Leonard's,
promising him sunny rooms, perfect quiet, and no intrusion,
and a godly nurse on our staff to wait upon him. But it was
not to be. He was not, for God took him.

In the following letter, Mr. Wingate gives an
interesting reference to this period : —

" We are just retvirned from Freshwater Bay, Isle of Wight,
close to the Poet Laureate's residence. The blessing of the

MR. WINGATE'S LETTER. 321

mission to the Jews had an interesting illustration. The day
of our arrival, the otlier half of our lodging was occupied by
a Eyde gentleman, a former mayor of that town, who reminded
me of my residence there thirty years ago. He is a decided
Christian, and told me he had met Dr. Saphir at Bournemouth
during his last winter there, and lodged in the same house.
He had been ordered there after an attack of pneumonia.
He is about seventy. He was devoted to ^^aphir. Every
Sunday, Saphir, being unable to walk, took him in the carriage
to church. Every one of the services in the Scotch Church he
attended. He was with him the day he left Bournemouth.
When in Byde, thirty years ago, our next neighbour was
Major York Martin, a cavalry officer and landed proprietor.
His wife was Scotch, and serious ; the major the reverse till
late in his life, when he came under the power of the gospel,
attracted by his daughter's faith after we left, and was attended
on his death-bed by the Evangelical clergyman of the Church
of England. They had one son and one daughter, the latter
a most interesting, elegant young lady, and most intelligent,
but born deaf and dumb. Hearing we were in the island, she
drove over to see us, and told me that it was through our inter-
course tliirty years ago that she was brought to Christ. She
had the original account by Dr. Keith of the origin of the
Pesth mission, and had always kept up a lively interest in
God's ancient people. She seemed very happy, and nursed her
mother, now an invalid. She wrote to my daughter as follows : —
' Please tell your mother and father that I believe Dr. Saphir's
book, called Found by the Good Shepherd, was the means of
much blessing to my late sister-in-law' (wife of Captain
Martin, her only brother). She was telling me about it a fort-
night before she was gone, showing me a passage in this book
(p. 159) beginning with, 'Lord, remember me!' and said that
she would like it read to her when she was dying. A few
days after she passed away, and her wish was granted."

In a letter to a relative dated Bouniemouth,
February 3, he says : —

" I am still here, though the place does not agree with either

322 SAPHIKS REFERENCE TO 'LUX MUNDIJ

of us. But the minister is still abroad, and one of the chief
members of the church who is very much attached to us is
dying. I don't know how long I may stay on. I told them
Sunday 8th is my last, but I may stay another Sunday or two."

After speaking of family affairs, he refers to Lux
Mundi. His relative was a clergyman : —

^* As for Lux Mundi, I have only read an analysis of it in
a German theological paper. It seems to me a thoroughly
unsound book ; not holding the utter and radical difference
between Truth, the Oracles of God committed and entrusted
to Israel, "Revelation embodied in Scripture, on the one hand,
and the thoughts, inspirations, and intuitions of men. The
Eev, H. S. Holland does not seem to know what faith is, and
views it (according to this analysis) chiefly as the subjective
longing upwards, not as the fiducia, calling Jesus my Christ and
Saviour, and given by the Spirit. All this talk about heathen
sages and moralists being substantially Christians, bolstered
up with quotations from the Fathers (who were poor muddled
babies in doctrine, most of them), is very weak, and subversive
of fundamental truth. * I am the Way.' As for the kenosis
being an argument to invalidate the force of Christ's declaration
concerning Scripture, it is painful to have such a mystery and
speculation brought to bear on a simple and important practical
point. But granting all the views of the kenosis, Christ viewed
simply as a Prophet ; and the Prophet could not mislead on such
a vital question. The distinction between self-made, subjective
prophets, and those whom God sent (vide Jeremiah), and the
very Mission of Christ, so often insisted on in the Gospels
(specially John), to be the light, and to make known to us the
Father, and all the Father wishes us to know, invests Christ's
teaching with absolute authority and certitude.

" This combination of High Chiirchism and Broad Churchism
is like the rheumatic gout. On the subject of the Church it
is high time that Christians should be taught clearly. It is
astonishing what a failure the so-called Church has been at all
times, a few bright glimpses of the Beformation period (about
twenty or thirty years) and such-like once a century, excepted.

MODERN BIBLE CRITICISM REJECTED. 323

This is a large subject, and I fancy you would think me too
radical if I wrote more. I told a Ritualist clergyman once,
The Church is quite as much a failure as an outward Institution,
as Israel was ! It is very sad to see the Church of England
so fearfully undermined and poisoned. Read Garhjle} Moses
and the Prophets ; also Cave's Conflict of the StandjmintsJ'

Saphir, it may be seen in this and other of his
letters, rejected, as unfounded, the modern revo-
lutionary criticism of the Old Testament of Graf,
Kuenen, Wellhausen, and others, modified, but
still adopted in its main outlines, by Driver and
emphatically by Cheyne. He considered that its
true basis was to be found, as avowed by Kuenen,
the ablest of the critics, in the denial or imiorino;
of the supernatural — the attempt to account for
the history apart from God. He believed that it
would speedily pass away, as the similar attempt
of Friedrich Baur with the books of the New
Testament, but that in the meantime it was doing
immense mischief in the Churches, in the un-
settling of faith, and that it was logically sub-
versive of Christianity. He was much grieved in
spirit and troubled in regard to this question, in
his later years. In his entire rejection of it in its
main features, he was supported by all converted
Jews of learning, we believe, and by almost all
the learned Rahhis, to whom Hebrew is familiar
from childhood as a native tongue.

The Saphirs returned from Bournemouth on

1 Referring to a little book of mine, which he strongly
recommended to a number of people. — G. C.

324 DR. SAPHIRS LAST SERMON.

Friday, March 13, both in excellent spirits, and, as
many of their friends thought, looking better than
when they left. Others, however, thought differ-
ently. On Saturday evening his friend, Mr. Frank
White, of Talbot Tabernacle, was ill, and sent to
him, to ask him to preach there on Sunday morn-
ino-. This he did. It was his last sermon. His
subject, singularly enough, was " Enoch walked
with God." After his wife's death he remarked
how singular it was that he should have chosen
such a text, little thinking, even then, that it
would apply also to himself.

Mr. Frank White writes as to this : —

" You are, I believe, writing a biography of dear Mr. Saphir.
May I say he preached his last sermon in our Talbot Tabernacle
about three weeks before his death, upon the text ' Enoch
walked with God.' It was noticed he stopped here, leaving
his own departure to illustrate the remainder — ' And he was
not, for God took him.' I was in very broken health at the
time ; and with his oft-proved kindness he consented to preach
for me, with only a few hours' notice. Many were struck with
the singular freshness and power which characterized this,
his last discourse on earth. May the special grace of God
strengthen you in your good effort, that, thereby, he being
dead, may yet speak ! "

Dr. Saphir thus wrote to Mrs. Rodger after his
return to London, on March 18, and about a
fortnio^ht before his death : —

" We got home on Friday, and I was feeling most tired on
Saturday, when at nine o'clock at night a neighbouring minis-
ter's wife called and told me her husband was rather ill, and
so I had to take his Morning Service.

"^I hope the weather in Bournemouth is better than here,

HIS LETTER TO MRS. RODGER. 325

so that you will not feel the change too much after the sunny
skies of the south. The people will be greatly delighted to
see you again, and I am sure you will have a very warm
welcome. Although we both felt languid all the time — perhaps
partly owing to the unfavourable weather, and the somewhat
limited lodgings — we enjoyed our stay at Bournemouth very
much, and shall always cherish a very pleasant and grateful
remembrance of it. So many congenial and kind peoj)le turned
up, also old friends — former hearers — that we felt greatly
cheered. We became very much attached to dear Mr.
Murray, and I am thankful I was able to see so much of him.
He often spoke of you, and very warmly. His simple faith
never wavered, and his delight in the Word of God and in
prayer was great. I said a few words about him the Sunday
after his death, and the congregation seemed much affected. . .
'• My whole time at St. Andrew's Church was bright, and
without the slightest even momentary cloud, and I do trust
that it has pleased God to give spiritual blessing. I felt
quite at home in the church. We got quite fond of Mr.
Douglas. Miss Digby often came to the church, and we
are greatly impressed with her thoroughness and devotion.
Mrs. Dent and my wife became quite romantically attached to
each other. Miss Jackson also we liked very much. . . . AVe
hope you will have much blessing and happiness in your home
and church, and all needful grace and strength. Mrs. East
was extremely kind, and we enjoyed her frank and sensible
conversation much. There is a dear bright old lady, Mrs.
Millie, who was introduced to us by a friend at Montr eux.
She is eighty-three, but very bright. Mrs. Hogue was also
very kind in calling, &c."

After this lie was attacked with influenza, from
which he had suffered before. There seemed no-
thing serious ; but Mrs. Saphir, as usual, constantly
tended him, and she also became ill. With her the
attack speedily passed to the lungs. At first little
was thought of it ; but she became rapidly worse,

326 MBS. SAPHIES DEATH.

and on the day before her death the case was
pronounced hopeless. She fell asleep calmly on the
morning of Tuesday, March 31, two or three weeks
after the return to London. Her last message to
a faithful servant was to take care of her master.
We have two letters written after Mrs. Saphir's
death. The first, on the day of her death, addressed
to their niece, Mrs. Maturin, is as follows : —

"My dear Leila,

"My brain and heart are both ^^e^/'Z/iecZ — as I write
to you of the awful loss I have sustained. Your dear aunt
Sara passed away this morning at one o'clock. No pain or
even struggle. We had both injluenza (I am full of ear-
aches and deafness, &c.), and dear A. S. went to a separate
room on Wednesday. Severe bronchitis, j^neumonia, con-
gestion of the lungs, and weakness of heart made it almost
hopeless from the beginning. Stanley Smith was not anxious
till Sunday. Second opinion, Harvey, on Monday. She
scarcely knew she was very ill — had no pain. I saw her to the
very last, but she could not say a word. Before that she had
said little kind things about Ethel's baby, etc.

" Dear Lady Grant, the Jacombs, and the Schonbergers are
extremely kind. I hope to hav^e the funeral on Friday — only
a few friends ; and I am not able for anything, being still
neuralgic, and have only Mary and Chickmoor. Both are
very good ; so really the kindest thing is to have the funeral
very, very quiet.

" Your dear Aunt Sara is the most wonderful thing I have
seen. The most perfect simplicity and childlike purity, and
an expression of deep thought. It is most striking.

" I cannot say more. I dare not think of the Future. I
ought to be thankful for the Past and for Eternity.

" Give my love to all the family. I am sure I have their
sympathy. I could speak to her to the last of the Blessed
Saviour, the love of God, and the perfect safety of Christ's
blood -bo uo^ht flock.

LETTERS IS REGARD Tu HER DEATH. 327

" God bless you, my dear Leila ! She enjoyed your last
letter. Always yours,

"■ A. ISaphir."

The second letter — the last probably he ever
wrote — was addressed on the following day, Wednes-
day, April 1, to Mrs. Kodger of Bournemouth : —

"My dear Mrs. Eodger,

"I can only write a line, my head and heart are so
sore. My darling Sara passed away yesterday morning,
after a few days' illness. I began with influenza, and she
followed, and had to go to another I'oom. After two days,
bronchitis led to pneumonia and coDgestion of the lungs.
Heart very weak. I knew of her intense danger only eight
hours or so. She had no pain, and no idea of danger. She
passed away most quietly. She looked at me, and listened to
the few words about the Father and Saviour I addressed
to her.

" Dear Mrs. Eodger, I cannot write. She often spoke of
you, and of Mr. Rodger's new start. She felt great affection
for the Bournemouth people. A very sweet remembrance !

" If Mr. Kodger would ask the Christian friends at St.
Andrew's to remember me in prayer, in my overwhelming
sorrow and desolateness of heart, I would esteem it a great
kindness. The Lord bless you both, and guide you day by
day ! I knew my dear wife since '52 ; we were married in
'54 ; and oh, what a treasure she was ! I have to give thanks.
Her face was exquisite after death, the simplicity and wisdom
of a child. My. dear friend — au revoir, as you said.

" Yours sincerely,

"A. Saphir.

" P.S. — I am full of neuralgia and influenza.
" I could not finish this till Thursday."

On Friday was the funeral of Mrs. Sapliir. His
attached friend. Lady Grant, was present in the

328 DR. SAPHIRS LAST BAYS ON EARTH.

house. A mutual friend states the following
affecting incident, described to her with deep
emotion by Lady Grant herself, just after it had
happened : — " Lady Grant had brought a wreath
of white flowers to put upon the coffin of her dearly
loved friend. Dr. Saphir took it in his hand,
and placed it himself and said, ' I will put this
wreath on the left side near her heart.' And then
he added, after a slight pause, ' and I wish now,
before my dear wife is carried to her last resting-
place, and in the presence of these few faithful
friends, to say what I feel about dear Lady Grant's
tender and unchanging friendship for us. The
deep comfort of her warm sympathy and affection
in hours of sorrow and anxiety cannot be expressed
by me, for she has been more than a mother to us.' "
He was deeply moved as he thus spoke.

Dr. Saphir was forbidden to attend the funeral ;
and his old and dear friend, Mr. Wingate, re-
mained with him in the house. He read many
of the letters of sympathy, seemed collected, and
he gave utterance to the words more than once
— " God is light, and in Him is no darkness " —
showing his perfect submission to the Divine will,
and his sense of the Divine love in the midst
of it all. He had no anticipation of his im-
mediate death. He had talked of leaving London,
and said in connection with this, when told
that a grave had been purchased for two, that
It was unnecessary, as he would not remain in
London. He had thoughts of returning to visit the

HIS SUFFERINGS AND DEATH. 329

home of his fathers — Pesth — which he had never
seen since his boyhood. Knowing that he was now
intestate, since he had left all in his will to his
wife, he arranged that his lawyer should visit him
on the next morning, at nine, to make a new will.
He took supper with his brother-in-law, Mr. E. H.
Perrin of Liverpool, who had come to the funeral
of Mrs. Saphir, and was staying with him, and he
went to bed apparently well. About four o'clock
the servant was awakened by his knocking on the
wall. She found him in great pain. He requested
her at once to send for Dr. Stanley Smith, who
was for many years a devoted friend as well as
medical adviser. His sufferings continued to in-
crease. He endured great agony for a time. Dr.
Stanley Smith used every effort to save him, but
the case was soon seen to be hopeless. He had
been attacked by angina pectoris, caused by the
sad excitement through which he had passed, for
he never had had any threatening of it before.
On his brother-in-law, Mr. Schonberger, speaking
to him of confidence in the glorious promises, he
gave signs of his acquiescence. He repeated to
him several psalms. Mrs. Schonberger was also
present at the time of his death. He passed
away before nine o'clock in the morning ; his
countenance most noble in death. His friends,
who came anxiously to inquire for him, were
startled by the intelligence that he had also gone.
Thus, within four days wife and husband, so
devoted to each other, had passed away from the

330 DR. SAPHIRS FUNERAL.

scenes of earth. Many of his friends had wondered
how he would ever get on without her, but the
question was now solved.

The funeral took place on Wednesday, April 8.
The coffin was borne to Trinity Church, Notting
Hill, so associated with him, and where so many
had listened to his words of power. Dr. Sinclair
Paterson, the minister, presided. The church was
filled with many mourning friends. Dr. Paterson,
Dr. Dykes, and others took part in the services,
and an impromptu address, which was thrilling and
powerful, was given by the Eev. Robert Taylor,
ever a much-loved friend. The following account
appeared of the funeral, and address, in Tlie
Christian of April 17, 1891:—

The deep and widespread feeling of sorrow at
the unexpected decease of the eminent preacher and
writer was manifest in the large and very repre-
sentative gathering of friends at the funeral service
last week in the Presbyterian Church, Notting Hill.
Many members of the London Presbyteries were
present, as well as the pastors belonging to other
denominations, and a large body of former hearers
and friends from diflferent parts of London. The
pulpit in which Dr. Saphir had stood so often
and delivered his wonderful discourses was draped
in black, and a solemn, sorrowful hush seemed
to brood over the congregation throughout the
impressive service.

As the coffin, laden with beautiful wreaths of
white flowers, was being carried up the aisle and

BEV. JR. TAYLOR'S FUNERAL ADDRESS. 331

deposited in front of the pulpit, Dr. Sinclair
Paterson (the pastor of the church) and Principal
Oswald Dykes took their places in the pulpit, with
brethren of Presbytery and other well-known
brethren, grouped around immediately below. The
service began with a brief but pathetic prayer by
Dr. Paterson. Then was sung the hymn —

" The sands of time are sinking,
The dawn of heaven breaks,"

chosen because it was a favourite with the departed.
Dr. Dykes read portions of the funeral service —
pra3^ers breathing resignation, and beseeching for
the sorrowing survivors the consolations of the
Divine Spirit ; and passages of Scripture full of
comfort and hope. During the reading, and
throuohout the solemn eno'ao-ements of the hour,
many in the congregation were bowed with grief.
After another hymn —

''Peace, perfect peace, in this cUrk world of sin,''

the Eev. Eobert Taylor of Upper Norwood delivered
with much feeling a short address. He said : —

Dear Friends and Fellow- mourners, — It is only
a few minutes since I was asked to take j)art in
this sad and solemn, and yet in some ways joyous
and beautiful, service. Even though I had had
long notice, I could not have felt myself qualified
to express half my own sense, or yours, of the
preciousness of the gift that God gave to us
in our departed brother, or the greatness of the
loss that we have sustained by His recalling that

332 RF.V. R. TAYLORS ADDRESS

precious gift. Still less could I trust myself to
give utterance to the feelings of affection and
admiration whicli sprang up spontaneously, and
continued during the whole term of my acquaint-
ance with, and relation to, our departed friend and
God's servant. And yet possibly it may not be
inappropriate to say a few words, that, if they do
not express, will at least suggest, to you who knew
and loved Dr. Saphir as I did, what we owe to
him and to the God who gave him to us. The
thought of what we owe both to the memory of
our friend and the grace of his and our Master,
may well make us strive to imbibe those profound
views of Biblical truth which he saw so clearly and
preached so powerfully, and to walk in the foot-
steps of his clear and glowing hope until we, too,
see the King in His beauty, and see our brother
transformed and glorified (yet not beyond our
recognition), by the sight and in the light of the
Master, he loved so well and served so faithfully.
I suppose that when we heard — some of us
only yesterday — of the singular, I might venture
to say tragical, circumstances connected with the
departure of those two — husband and wife — so loug
and so closely and tenderly linked to one another,
we were at first stunned and almost ap2:)alled by
what seemed to us the mysterious though, no
doubt, righteous and loving ways of their and our
Father. And yet I assume that a very few minutes'
reflection disclosed to us not only the singular
grace, but, I would venture to say, the singular

AT DR. SAPHIR'S FUNERAL. 333

beauty of that Divine dispensation that severed
these two, so long and dearly linked, and for a
few brief days parted. It must have proved pain-
ful to our beloved brother when, not the hand of
death, but of Death's Destroyer and his dear Lord,
unclosed from his fond hand that hand which his
had so long clasped. But was it not gracious and
beautiful when the same Lord came back again,
and giving the solitary mourner His Own Divine
Hand, led him too across the valley, and reunited
those two, so suddenly and for so short a season
severed ; then in that blessed union, not a marriage
union, but better, and holier, and happier than a
marriage union — to the Blessed Bridegroom of all
redeemed souls, and to one another in Him, and
with Him, and like Him, for ever and ever ?

PKOPHET, APOSTLE, SEER.

I cannot detain you by doing more than
pointing in simple phrase to what you and I
recognize and rejoice at, in the singular and pre-
eminent gifts and graces of our departed friend
and brother. It is true, indeed, as we are told in
the Lord's own Word, that the sons of God are
born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor
of the will of man, but of God. And yet I do not
do dishonour to the Divine grace, which is not
only paramount, but in some respects alone in the
wondrous transaction that makes a child of the
flesh into a spiritual child of the living God, when
I say that we can hardly fail to recognize and

334 REV. R. TAYLORS ADDRESS

learn the influence of blood and of race in the
spirit and teaching of our departed brother. He
united in a rather remarkable way — in a way that
was only possible to one in whom the blood of
patriarchs, and prophets, and apostles flowed — the
spiritual iusight, the sense of God, and of things
Godly and Divine, peculiarly appropriate at once
to the prophet of the Old Testament and the
apostle of the New. In these days, when truth
is thrown into the crucible, only, as we are fully
assured, to come forth like refined gold, how
precious to the Church of God were the teaching
and testimony of such a man of God, filled with
the Holy Ghost, and whose attitude towards Divine
truth was ever, not philosophical, not scientific,
but Biblical and spiritual ; who spoke as a man,
who saw and who felt, and therefore who fully
knew, the deep things of God ! And do we not
rejoice to-day, that though his voice is silent now,
his teaching lives in those precious volumes which
he has bequeathed as his legacy to the Church ?
Have we not often felt, as we listened to him, that
the fire and fervour of holy Samuel Eutherford,
and the depth and comprehensiveness of the great
John Owen, were combined in this remarkable man ?
This dispensation of the 23rovidencc of our loving
Father, in many respects is sad and sore from our
point of view. But in these days, when so much
attention, especially on the part of our younger
ministers, is being given to comparatively sub-
ordinate and external questions affecting the Book

AT DR. SAPHIR'S FUNERAL. 335

of God, if this dispensation should lead our young
men to baptize themselves — I might say to bury
themselves — in the thoughts and inspirations of the
great spiritual teacher, apostle, seer, whom God
hath now taken to Himself, it will not only not be
a heavy loss, but a great gain, first to the teachers
themselves, and then to the members of the Church
of God.

I feel that I have trespassed too far, but I
have just spoken what has come to my mind and
welled out of my heart at the moment. I loved
our departed friend with a very peculiar love. I
admired him, and in other years, more than recently,
I frequently enjoyed his delightful fellowship. I
was charmed to know, as only those who came in
contact with him in the confidence and all'ection
of private friendship know, how the more solemn
and thoughtful elements of his character were
softened and illuminated by a singular gracious-
ness and a flashing humour of spirit. We recall
his gifts and graces, we bewail his loss, we cherish
his memory, we consecrate ourselves anew to the
service of the dear Master, whom he now sees face
to face. And we resolve and trust that the kingdom
of our Lord Jesus Christ shall be the great subject
of our thought, the great object of our anxiety,
of our eflbrt, of our prayer, till we too see Him
in His beauty, where His servant now is — see Him,
mayhap, as His servant, in glowing language, often
pictured Him, when He shall come again in the
glory of His Father, attended by His angels, to

336 SPURGEON'S TESTIMONY.

gather His saints into the light of His love, and
to say to them : " Come, ye blessed of My Father,
inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the
foundation of the VA^orld."

At the close of Mr. Taylor's address, prayer
was offered by the Rev. George Elder of Greenwich,
who succeeded Dr. Saphir in the ministry there.
The hymn was sung —

" For ever with the Lord,"

and the Benediction was pronounced (in tones
never to be forgotten) by the Rev. W. Wingate,
the oldest living friend of the deceased, and one
of those who received Dr. Saphir into the fellowship
of the Christian Church at Pesth.

Mr. Spurgeon, who was so soon himself to
follow, thus noticed his death at the close of his
sermon, on April 12, 1891, one of the few last
sermons of his wonderful ministry : —

" Our dearly beloved friend Adolph Saphir
passed away last Saturday, and his wife died three
days before him. When my dear brother. Dr.
Sinclair Paterson, went to see him, the beloved
Saphir said to him, * God is light, and in Him is
no darkness at all.' Nobody could have quoted
that passage but Saphir, the Biblical student, the
lover of the Word, the lover of the God of Israel —
' God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all.'
His dear wife is gone, and he himself is ill ; but
' God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all.'

MB. WIN GATE'S TESTIMONY. 337

This is a deep well of overflowing comfort, if you
understand it well. God's providence is light as
well as His promise, and the Holy Spirit makes
us know this. God's word, and will, and w^ay are
all light to His people, and in Him is no darkness
at all for them. God Himself is purely and only
light. What if there be darkness in me, there is
no darkness in Him ; and His Spirit causes me to
fly to Him ! What if there be darkness in my
family, there is no darkness in my covenant God,
and His Spirit makes me rest in Him ! What if
there be darkness in my body, by reason of my
failing strength, there is no failing in Him, and
there is no darkness in Him ; His Spirit assures
me of this. David says, ' God, my exceeding joy ' ;
and such He is to us. ' Yea, mine own God is
He.' Can you say, ' My God, my God ' ? Do
you want any more ? . . . He is all that is good.
' Light only ; in Him is no darkness at all.' I have
all light, yea, all things when I have my God."

Mr. Wins^ate wrote to the Jeivish Herald:—-
In the death of Dr. Saphir, the Church has
lost the prince of Bible preachers. Like Luther,
he was a Doctor of Holy Scripture, and though
dead, his thoughtful and spirited books, no less
than his eminently helpful ministrations, will
speak to many hearts the Gospel of Christ for
years to come.

From the hour of his spiritual birth to his
sudden translation to glory last Saturday, grace

338 NOTICED OF DR. SAPHIR'S DEATH.

reigned triumphantly in Dr. Sapbir. He was one
of the most beautiful, heavenly- minded men of this
age ; bumble, loving, filled with Scripture from
Genesis to Ke relation — a mind unique ; highly
educated in German, English, and all literature.
The gospel, in all his sermons, was so interwoven
with the Old and New Testaments, that without
any " Apologetics," you felt every heresy answered.
The "Word" was with him, the "Word of God,"
living, powerful, awakening, sanctifying, saving.
Sincere Christians left the church rejoicing, feeling
like the disciples at Emmaus ; the Scriptures were
opened, and their hearts warmed by the Holy
Spirit, Christ Himself being in the midst of them,
fulfilling His promise, "Preach ye the gospel,"
and " I am with you always, to the end of the
ages."

Mrs. Sapbir passed away in perfect peace. Her
funeral took place on Friday. Dr. Saphir sat in a
chair and received the mourners. After a short
service all left for Kensal Green cemetery, leaving me
in charge of Dr. Saphir. Being alone, we conversed
about his beloved wife, already " absent from the
body," but "j^i^esent with the Lord." He spoke of his
last sermon (on Enoch, and applied it to her), and
then said how the eleventh chapter of St. John was
never out of his mind. "It abode with me," he said,
"verse by verse, ever since I took ill ; but to-day I
am calmed and resigned by this word, 'God is light,
and in Him is no darkness — no darkness — no
darkness/ " emphasizing it thus. I now took leave.

BEAUTIFUL THOUGHTS. 339

handing him over to the care of his brother-in-law,
neither of us dreaming that we should never
again converse on earth. Next morning a message
came, "Dr. Sapbir passed away in perfect peace
before nine o'clock this morning." Lovely in
their forty years' union, in death they were not
divided.

A few days after the funeral of Dr. Saphir, Mr.
Schonberger remarked, " I closed the eyes of Dr.
Saphir' s father in Bud a- Pest ; I closed the eyes of
Dr. Saphir's mother, who lived with me in Prague ;
and now I am come to London to do the same, at
his deathbed." Mr. Schonberger could not see the
meaning of his return at first, but now^ it was
all plain. He and his wife. Dr. Saphir's only
surviving sister, carefully endorse the following
beautiful thoughts from the pen of one who is now

o

pen

looking at all things from the heavenly heights : —
" All the events of life are precious to one that
has this simple connection with Christ of faith and
love. No wind can blow wrong. If God but cares
for our inward and eternal life ; if by all the experi-
ences of this life He is reducing it and preparing
for its disclosure, nothing can befall us but pros-
perity. Every sorrow shall be but the setting of
some luminous jewel of joy ; our very mourning
shall be but the enamel around the diamond ; our
very hardships but the metallic rim that holds the
opal, glowing with strange interior fires."

A German journal, devoted to Jewish missions,
thus noticed his death : —

340 MINUTE OF GREENWICH SESSION.

" On April 4 of this year fell asleep in London,
at the age of sixty, the Presbyterian preacher,
Dr. Aclolph Saphir, the blessed witness of the
gospel from among the people of Israel, the
Christian writer full of genius, whose book, Christ
and the Scriptures, won for him numerous admirers
in Germany, the warm friend of Jewish missions
in recent times, of the work especially of Joseph
Eabinowich, whose financial support was chiefly
dependent on him ; one of the ripest fruits that
God has given to the mission during the present
century."

Many letters were written, expressive of deep
sorrow. Mr. Cockburn, his aged and devoted friend,
since departed, wrote : —

" It has been a very terrible time. The loss of my dear
friend and teacher and guide for so many years (ever since he
came to Greenwich), is a most sore calamity, a great gulf in
what remains to me of life ; and to how many more must it
not be inexpressible loss ; and what infinite good has he not
done in that life of most earnest work in the Lord's service !
Friends rightly term this sudden removal a translation."

The Session of Greenwich drew up a minute in
which it was said : — " Although many years have
elapsed since the pastoral tie connecting him with
this congregation was severed, his name is still a
household word, and the memory of his faithful
ministry is imprinted on many a heart."

Dr. Saphir was buried in Kensal Green. The
selection of the ground, and all the preparations,
had been made by Lady Grant. There was a long

INSCRIPTION ON THE TOMBSTONE. 341

procession of carriages, witli mourners representing
many sections of the Church. The following is
the inscription on the tombstone : —

OP

THE REV. ADOLPH SAPHIR, D.D.

MINISTER OF THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH OF ENGLAND.

Born September 26, 1831 : died April 4, 1891.

" I determined not to know anything among yon, save Jesus Christ,
and Him crucified." — 1 Cor. ii. 2.

AND

SARA SAPHIR,

THE BELOVED WIFE OF DR. A. SAPHIR,

Bom May 10, 1826 : died March 31, 1891.

They " were lovely and pleasant in their lives, and in their death they
were not divided." — 2 Sam. i. 23.

342

CHAPTER XXYL

PITHY SAYINGS AND SHORT EXTRACTS.

The Christian's Walk — What a Beautiful Saviour I have —
The Devil's Gospel— Going to Heaven — Little Steps —
Answers to Prayer — The Bible and Nature — The Penitent
Thief — God gives the Superfluities — Out and Out Christians
—False and True Worship — Union with Christ — The
Trinity — Beauty of Scripture — Jesus identifying Himself
with Humanity — Preaching, what it is — Heaven's In-
habitants — The Apostolic Church — The C.oss — Aflliction
and its Blessed Influeuces — Keeping the Garments always
White — The Lord's Supper and the Passover — Assurance
—God in the Old Testament — Union of Christians — Joy
precedes Peace — The Wonderful, Tender Love of God — God
and Satan — The Jews — Faith and Prayer — Genius and
Spirituality — The Body not the Chief Centre of Sin — The
Apostles and Idolatry— The Apostles—" The World "—
Preaching Christ according to the Scriptures — " Except ye
become as Little Children."

WE give the following selection of pitliy sayings
and short extracts. Dr. Saphir had special
power of expressing great truths in a few telling
words, which easily fixed themselves on the memory,
and we are sure that this selection will be read
with interest. For most of these we are indebted
to the quotations and ample notes of Miss M. H.
Greenwood, who wrote out in fall, in many volumes,
most of the sermons preached by Saphir, when
minister of Greenwich. She has given a graphic

SINGING WITH UNDERSTANDING. 343

account, which we have inserted in its place, of the
effect of his preaching and ministry at Greenwich.

MATTER NOT CARNAL.

" Don't fall into the clumsy mistake that all
matter is carnal. Matter is not carnal. All created
things come from God, and He also created the
ear, the eye, and the receptive faculties to enjoy
the beauties of His creation."

SINGING WITH UNDERSTANDING.

'' The hymns we sing, how much do you mean
of them ? Of course you say the words, because
they go nicely to the tune, and that carries you
along.

' The dying thief rejoiced to see
That fountain in his day,
And there may I, though vile as he,
Wash all my sins away.'

But I tell you what you really sing in your
hearts —

' The dying thief rejoiced to see
That fountain in his day,
Much more may I, less vile than he,
Wash my few sins away.' "

A SHORT RULE FOR THE CHRISTIAN'S WALK.

Let your great delight be, to be in the company
of Jesus, and then do whatever you like.

'' UNTO HIM BE DOMINION."

When the whole self is dedicated to Jesus, and
His love is ruling in our hearts, then is His
dominion manifested in us ; if we go on in gloom,

344 ' UNTO HIM BE DOMINION:

selfishness, and unbelief, where is the dominion of
Jesus ? If under the dominion of Him who loveth
us, it would be all sunshine, patience, submission,
surrender of our faculties to God. Dominion of
Jesus means that those under it depart from
iniquity ; that Jesus, by the power of His dying
love, be with us as a fire consuming that which
defiles. Dominion of Jesus means that in God's
strength we are not only to resist, but to overcome.
And now as we come to His table, may we pray in
our hearts, " To this Jesus be glory and dominion,
and may the power of His shed blood and present
love be made manifest in our lives ! " When His
glory and dominion shine into our hearts, and are
shown forth in our lives, then do we bring Him
some new thing in which He rejoices.

WHAT A BEAUTIFUL SAVIOUR I HAVE.

The one who believes in Jesus, and loves Jesus,
can't rest satisfied till he knows also about the
future of this God manifest in the flesh. It is
easy to speak about a dead Christ ; all so-called
religion is easy if we leave out God, the livmg God.
Can any one earnestly try to realize God, without
flying to Jesus as their Eedeemer and Shield ? If
Jesus is a reality to us, and we believe that He is
in heaven now, havino- died for us, and now lovino^
us, the question at once arises. Is He coming again ?
If the Second Advent is ignored, it is not a doctrine,
but Jesus Himself that is ignored. When faith
rests on what Jesus has done, love goes forth to

WHAT IS THE LORD'S DAT? 345

Jesus as He lives at present, and the soul that sees
Him does not say, '' 1 ought to be religious," but
" What a beautiful Saviour I have ! "

WHAT IS THE LORD'S DAY ?

What do those mean who are always seeking
amusement ? They mean. There is one person in
the world I hate — that is myself. Divert me from
myself in any way — there is no rest, no use, no
support to lean upon, no repose, no certainty.
The ungodly are Sabbathless ; there is no rhytlim,
no music, no harmony, no pause in their life ; but
while we grieve to see them going their own way
on the Lord's Day, we can't give them a command
to keep it, for it is something much higher and
more beautiful. LorcVs Day ! — the day of Jehovah
manifest in the flesh, day of Jesus, the glorified
Son of man, foretaste and earnest of that never-
ending blessedness which we shall enjoy with Him.

Reliever in Jesus, don't you rise on the Lord's

Day a sinless, spotless man ? He died because of

sin, He rose because of justification, and though

the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young

men shall utterly fall, those that wait upon the

Lord shall renew their strength. On this day

John was in the Spirit, therefore there was no

doubt, or sorrow, or grief with him. He heard a

voice speaking with him ; he had known Jesus on

earth, and now he fell at His feet adoring, as one

dead. The clay tenement could not stand the

exceeding brightness before him ; but there is no

z

U(y THE DEVIL'S GOSPEL

terror that can take away the life of a believer, no
glory can overwhelm it ; and so John lived on,
because he felt the beloved hand of Jesus resting
upon him. How^ well he knew that pierced hand !
Do i/ou know it ? And Jesus said as Jehovah
always has said to His people, " Fear not.'' Why ?
" Because / am Jesus." The world says, What
do you believe ? No tvhat at all : tvhom do you
believe ? And if you can answer, " I trust Jesus,"
that's all.

THE devil's gospel.

"Don't believe the devil's gospel, which is a
chance of salvation ; chance of salvation is chance
of damnation. Is God's love a love that will
meet you when you die ? Is it a love that is
waiting for yoic to do a number of things before it
receives and embraces you ? JSfo ; it is love for all
eternity, which reached us when Jesus died upon
the cross ; love that you have Ijut to receive, and
you are sealed with this Holy Spirit of promise,
who is to be with you — keeping, assuring, sealing,
training, comforting, enabling you to live to the
glory of God. The seal has two as2:)ects — inside,
' The Lord knoweth them that are His ' — outside,
' Let every one that nametli the name of Christ
depart from iniquity.' You are black, but comely ;
poor, but Jesus is your riches ; weak, but Jesus is
your strength. There is a secret acquaintance
between God and you, and when you are gathered
in with the blessed people of the Lord, Jesus will

CWING TO HEAVEN. 347

not say, "' I never knew you,' for even before His
name was as music and fragrance to you. He
knew you, quickened you ; it may be like the little
maid, amiable and beautiful to man, but dead ; or
like the young man whom they were carrying to
his burial ; or like Lazarus, offensive even to man,
steeped in sin. Jesus can say, ' I quickened you,'
calling you by name. ' I knew you in doubt, cheer-
ing yoa in sorrow, comforting and confirming you,
as with the two disciples on their way to Emmaus.'
" This seal is the earnest of the inheritance, a
part of it, as an assurance of the whole. All other
religions are like false bank-notes, issued on a bank
that will never pay them ; but the promises God
gives are not paper, but substance T

GOING TO HEAVEN.

" Does one ask, Are you going to heaven ? I
am gone there. What is heaven ? Fellowship with
God 1 I have it already. Peace in Christ ? Access
into the holiest ? Love to all that love Jesus ?
These I have already, truly not yet ia full measure ;
but he that belie veth hath, and the Holy Spirit in
us is the earnest.

" In heaven we shall see the Lord Jesus exalted
on His throne. The Spirit reveals Him now to the
eyes of our ftiitli as the Lamb in the midst of the
throne.

" Can sin enter there ? Can the accusations of
the devil enter there ? AVill you be in peace and
safety there ? Will you be afraid of ever falling

348 LITTLE STEPS.

out again when you are there ? Jesus says, They
must have a little of all this now ; they must have
it in substance, though not in degree. Is it not
written, ' Blessed be the God and Father of our
Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us ' ?

" Won't we be sti^ong when we get there ? Won't
we serve Him, and not spoil it as we do now ?
The Holy Spirit is given that we may do our daily
business for Jesus, and adorn the doctrine of God
our Saviour in all things. Beholding Jesus is
heaven. Ferfect peace in Jesus is heaven.
Serving God out of love is heaven. Have you
not got it all now, dear believer, by the Holy

Ghost r'

LITTLE STEPS.

" If you will be simple, God will take little steps
with you. It is wonderful, when a sinner comes to
himself, all in himself is uneasy and wretchedness ;
but deeper than himself will he find the everlasting-
arms ; and if he digs very deep, he will find the
mercy of God compassing him about."

ANSWERS TO PRAYER.

The prayers of the Bible are not notions in
grand phraseology, but the prayers of men who
spoke straightforward from the heart, in simple
language, unto God ; the more simple the better.
God answers in difi*erent ways ; it need not be in
the way we expect. We pray that He would re-
move a difliculty, God answers by giving more
strength to bear it ; we pray to have a temptation

THE BIBLE AND NATURE. 340

removed, God answers by increasing our purity
of heart, so that it ceases to be a temptation. God
sometimes hears while we are speaking, as with
Daniel, and sometimes He defers the answer. There
is a beautiful saying in the ancient Church, " If
Stephen had not prayed, Paul would never have
preached." Thus our faith is a great reality not
merely over the world, but a great reality with
God. Simeon prayed all his lifetime, but it was
only at the end of his days that the '' Amen "
came.

THE BIBLE AND NATURE.

There is no book in the whole world that has
such a tender affection for nature as the Bible.
God loves His works. He knows they are very
good, created by His dear Son, perfected, brought
into living beauty by the power of the Holy Ghost.
He knows what depth of thought He has put into
them, that hidden thought of love, which was from
all eternity : so that the heavens and earth, the
trees and fields, all that we see around us, is illus-
trative of some eternal and heavenly truth, and
therefore w^e are often told in Scripture to look
around and above us, that we may find out the
hidden depths of God's love in the w^orks of
creation.

THE PENITENT THIEF.

People say he was saved ; but he will have a
starless crown. I don't believe there is a minister
of God who will have so many stars in his crown

850 GOD GIVES THE SUPERFLUITIES.

as this penitent thief, or who has been the means of
saving so many souls as the history of this man's
repentance and foith. How many from the depths
of crime, encouraged by reading this history, have
gone to the scaffold to suffer the penalty of their
deeds trusting in Jesus, and who shall be numbered
witli His saints in the glory everlasting !

GOD GIVES THE SUPERFLUITIES.

This is not a case of people starving, as when in
the wilderness Jesus fed them, or of disease and
suffering; when He in love delivered them from it.
This was simply a superfluity, a luxury ; they had
no wine, and what does this mean ? — for it is a
sign, and must signify something. That God
created man not merely that he should endure
existence, that he should drag through life, but
that he should rejoice ; that there should be a
happiness, a festivity, a gladness within him ; not
only that he should be reconciled to his existence
and have what is needful, but that he should feel
within him a music, a rliythm ; that he should be
able to say, It is a joy to live, He hatli crowned
me with loving-kindness and tender mercies. So
that in one sense the world is not wrong when it
seeks for the ornamental and the beautiful ; it is
an instinct of what is true, that God created us for
brightness and glory.

OUT AND OUT CHRISTIANS.

We must be out and out Christians, unmistak-
able Christians. We are bidden to be strong, and

rXloX WITH CHUJST, 351

ought to be, if the Spirit is the oil of gladness, if
Jesus is the chief among ten thousand, if God is
the CTod of all grace, and Father of consolation.
Dear friends, either the world is mad, or we are
mad. Tlio trutli of the riospel is light that comes
down in lore.

FALSE AND TRUE WORSHIP.

The difference 1:)etween false and true worship is,
that false worship aims at forgiveness, true worship
begins with forgiveness of sin. In false worshij)
there is no thanksgiving ; true worship gives
thanks for full remission, begins with praise, with
Abba Father.

UNION WITH CHRIST.

There is a wonderful peace and calmness in a
union which is not to be severed. For ever, Christ
is ours. Here all is perfect. The whole Christ is
ours — what He lived, what He suffered, what He
is now, and what He will be. His past and His
future is all ours ! And because we have this per-
fection in Christ, we press towards the mark, and
take more freely out of His fullness. My Beloved is
mine. In this we rest ; in this we walk. It is not
now six days' work and seventh day rest. God says,
the first thing you must do is to rest in Himself ;
and when one rests in Jesus, then we work for
Jesus ; when we rest in faith, we Jive hy faith ;
when we rest in love, we walh in love. Every one
has a ojod. Something everv heart is lovino; • if
not Jesus, none can rest. Rest then in Jesus,

352 THE TRINITY.

who is God's Beloved ; and when you see Him at
Bethlehem, in Gethsemane, on the Cross, and in
heaven interceding for you, then can you say,
" My Beloved is mine."

THE TRINITY.

Only in a triune God, is perfect atonement and
reconciliation. God was in Christ reconciling the
w^orld to Himself. By the Holy Ghost, Christ and
the Church arc one : He is in them, and they are
inseparable from Him in life and death, in time and
eternity. Thus the Church was to baptize into the
name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. In
the very commencement of Genesis we are taught
that God, who created all things, created all things
by the Word, and that the Spirit of God moved
upon the face of the waters. The doctrine of the
Trinity is the great stumbling-block, to modern
Jews ; and yet, as is shown, the testimony of
Jewish writings to the doctrine of the Trinity is
not inconsiderable. They derived it from the Old
Testament, and many of them believed that the
Messiah was to be truly God — though not the
Father. In the Church there is to be obedience
to the Divine law. It consists in a Divine love,
it proceeds from the reception of redeeming love,
it is formed after a Divine pattern, and it is shed
abroad and kept in the heart by the Holy Ghost.

BEAUTY OF SCRIPTURE.

Luther has said that when he looks at any
Scripture passage he finds it so full of beauty and

JESUS IDENTIFIED WITH HUMANITY. 353

instruction, that it appears to him that every daisy
becomes a whole meadow. And indeed it is so.
Every narrative about Christ, every doctrine about
God, every promise given to the children of the
Most High, is inexhaustible in the depth of its
meaning and its consolation ; every tree as we look
at it becomes a whole forest.

JESUS identifyinct himself with humanity.

Jesus became man to remain man for evermore ;
and when Jesus was living on earth His great
object, the great task set before Him, was to get
back again where He was before. He had left His
position, never again to have it as He had it before,
never again to divest Himself of His humanity.
He had, as it were, cut off the bridge behind Him,
by identifying Himself with our nature, with all our
load of sin, on the Cross. Christ's object was to
bring humanity not back to where it was originally,
but where it never was before ; and as He came
nearer to the great channel where He had to pass.
He prayed God to glorify Him as He had glorified
Him before. It was necessary that Jesus, to be-
come the beginner of a great multitude of people,
should be glorified, and on the cross He was glori-
fied. Because He died and rose again. He could
take His place on high, as the first-born of many
brethren, as the Saviour of His people. Jesus
knew that through suffering alone could He get
back again into that glory, which He had with the
Father before the world was.

354 PREACHING, WHAT IT IS.

PREACHING, WHAT IT IS.

The preaching of the gospel, however legitimately
allied to natural and mental acquirements, must
always retain the mark of crucifixion. It does not
become us to be orators. There is an element in
human eloquence, which is not according to the
gospel of Christ. Preaching is more than an
exposition of Scripture; it is a reproduction of
Scri'i^ture. It is the Word of God, and it is in-
spired, though not as the Scriptures, — in which
there is no admixture of sin and error, and which
remains always the standard by which even apos-
tolic preaching is judged (Acts xvii. 11). The
gospel is preached with the Holy Ghost sent down
from heaven. It brings light, it produces faith.
What the preacher describes, the Holy Ghost
reveals and bestows upon the hearer.

heaven's inhabitants.

Jesus is in heaven as a Man that can he seen
in God ; the Father is represented in Jesus. The
angels and the spirits of just men made perfect are
also in heaven ; when we draw near in prayer, we
behold also the dead saints who have fallen asleep
in Jesus, for the dead also are linked to Jesus. We
have no description of their place or condition ; but
this we know, that they praise and adore God ;
they are near to heaven, and whatever mysterious
mission is assigned to them, it is theirs to offer
unto God.

THE APOSTOLIC CHURCIL 355

THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH.

The history of the Apostolic Church is the guide-
book of the Church in every age — a Church full of joy
and peace — the home of Love. Full of spirituality,
and yet with the combination of liberty and order,
all gifts were encouraged. The first great object of
the Church is worship. The spirit of worship ought
to manifest itself in all things connected with our
assemblies. It is from worship, from communion
with the Father and the Son, that the congregation
is to o'o forth into the life of the week. The Church,
renewed every Lord's Day in her resurrection-life,
will then, durins; the week, live and work for the
Master.

THE CROSS.

Without the Cross there is no Christ. The Lord
is called Messiah, Anointed, because He is the true,
perfect, and all-sufficient Prophet, Priest, and King.
In this threefold office, Christ is the only Mediator
between God and man ; in this threefold office He
brings light, love, and life to our hearts. These
three offices comprise His mediatorial work. They
are inseparably connected one with another, and
they all culminate in the Cross. His whole earthly
life was a preparation for this Priesthood. It was
on the Cross that He offered Himself a Sacrifice to
God. He entered into the Holy of Holies by virtue
of the Blood which He shed upon the Cross. Our
Lord was continually looking forward to His death.
While other men look upon death as the limit and

356 BLESSED INFLUENCES OF AFFLICTION.

termination of their work, Jesus regards His death
as His great, His all-glorious work, the source and
commencement of His true and eternal influence.

AFFLICTION AND ITS BLESSED INFLUENCES.

Affliction is a school, but the Holy Spirit is the
Teacher.

First, the full use of affliction is to make a man
examine himself before God, and in doing so
David found not only his sin but his sincerity.
His heart was loyal to God, and though His gifts
were withdrawn, the Giver was still beloved.
Secondly, affliction gave David a strong heart.
There is a paradox. Who hns a strong heart
but he who has a broken heart, who loathes
himself, and whose strength and joy is in the Lord
of Hosts ? Thirdly, affliction developed the meek-
ness of David. There was only One who needed
no trials to humble Him in the sight of God ; and
when John saw Him coming, a hero from the fight,
he saw Him as the Lamb. Fourthly, affliction
taught David patience. What is patience ? It is
not imiifference ; it is not insensibility ; it is the
standing erect of a strong, sensitive soul, under
the burden which God sends. It is to see the
hand of God and kiss it. It is the exercise of
faith, never doubting the goodness of God. In this
patience there is lioioe. There are many standards
of suffering. First, I must suffer. Secondly, I
am willing to suffer. Thirdly, I can suffer, God
strengthening me. Fourthly, I am privileged

KEEPING GARMENTS ALWAYS WHITE. 35'

to suffer. I glory in tribulation. " Tribulation
worketh patience ; and patience, experience ; and
experience, hope : and hope maketh not ashamed."
Affliction worked in David, humility, contrition,
strength, meekness, patience.

KEEPING THE GARMENTS ALWAYS WHITE.

God always told the Jews that they polluted
themselves, by coming into contact with the idols
of the heathen nations. What are idols to us
now ? The religious opinion of the world, the false
doctrine of the world, relying on outward things,
the standard and the custom of the world, the
sinful practices of those around us ; we must live
in the world, but Jesus prays, " keep them from
the evil." Christians must keep themselves "un-
spotted from the world," and this can only be done
in a twofold way ; firstly, by not touching the
defiling things, abstaining from them; and secondly,
when they touch you, by immediately resisting
them. The command is to keep our garments
always w^iitc. White is the brightest, most
sensitive colour, shows most quickly and distinctly
any touch and soil. We must have a high
standard — pure, even as Christ is pure ; not clean
only, but ivhite ; this signifies the perfection of
the Lord Jesus, — always, not occasionally, but
alivays. Do you ask, if there are such sources of
defilement within and around us, how is this
possible ? Answ'er : We must ahvays he ivashing
them. This is the only wuv, continuallv ooino- to

358 THE LORD'S SUPPER.

Jesus, and asking Him, by the power of the Holy
Ghost, to apply to our heart the power as well as
the merits of His all-sufficient atonement. This
implies sensitiveness. The experience of the
Christian must always be that he becomes more
alive to the impurity of the world, within aod
around him.

THE lord's supper AND THE PASSOVER.

The institution is mentioned in the three first
gospels, but not in John. It is omitted there for
three reasons, but chiefly because throughout John,
more than any other part of the New Testament,
the spiritual meaning of the Lord's Supper is dwelt
upon. Jesus is spoken of as the Bread of Life and
the Water of Life. It is extraordinary that this
ordinance, so simple in itself, has been so misunder-
stood. Jesus gave it as a plain explanation of
something more difficult, and instead, it has been
made a mystery. The Romish Church has made it
a sacrifice, while the sacrifice has been once made
for ever. But, what is still more wonderful,
people have made it a cause of discord and
separation ; while it is intended as a feast of love
and union. People will hear the Word preached,
join in prayer, and yet not break the bread and
drink the wine together, which shows that they
do not see that it is the Lord's table, and not
the Presbyterian, Episcopal, Independent, Baptist
table ; and while they are meeting together, they
arc all the time spiritually partaking of the Lord's

THE PASSOVER. 359

JSupper, by leediDg upon Jesus in their hearts by
faith. It is often celebrated unlike a supper,
people going few at a time, kneeling at an altar.
Altars should be done away with. There is no
priest but One, God's High Priest, entered into the
heavens for us, except in the sense of Kevelation i. 6.
The true idea is that of a supper, a family brother-
hood uathered tooether. with Jesus Christ as the
Headj presiding by the power of the Holy Ghost.
It is also clearly connected wdth the Passover, thus
linking the Old and New Testaments. " With
desire, have I desired to eat this jt^assorer with
you." The Passover was a united family festival,
where the father presided, and at a certain part of
the feast, the youngest asked the meaning of it all,
and the story of God's love and mercy was given.
Luke xxii. 16th relates to the rejoicing before
the God of Israel as a united f^imily when they
are restored, and the 20th verse to the cup of
benediction. " This is the New Testament in My
blood." Jesus wished to assure them that though
He was going to ascend into heaven, yet He was
still to be their Head, and the real presence they
would still have, though He was to be in glory.
And to assure their hearts that He, their Master,
w^as still present with them, they were to break
bread and drink wine in remembrance of Him.

ASSURANCE.

There come times when all your past experience
seems taken away from you. You can't remember ;

360 ASSURANCE.

at least you can't appropriate, you can't realize it.
It is as though we had never ate and drank of
what Christ gives us. We have no joy with which
to rejoice. This also is an experience, through
which all God's people have come. This is the
wonderful thing in the Prophets and Psalms. God
does not put before us the image of His saints as
they ought to be, but as they were — all their
tears and failings and complaints and feelings of
desertion and groanings.

I fear many things are said of assurance that
never ought to have been said. It is very difficult
to speak of assurance, so as not to distress the
truly godly, and not to puff up those who think
they are rich and have need of nothing. The Lord
will satisfy the hungry ; He will raise up those
that are bowed down ; He will feed them just
because they are hungry ; He will strengthen
them, just because they are weak.

After Jacob had gained the victory over Jehovah
and been called Israel, how did he go on all his
life '^ Not as a hero triumphant, but he went
halting. Many would like always to be singing
*' Hallelujah ! " to have entered already the land of
promise and glory, to put aside the weapons of
their conflict. So was it not with the old saints.
Don't you be discouraged when you are weak,
when you cry out of the depths in your helpless-
ness, when you experience that there is another law
within you, striving against the Spirit of life within.
The Lord is revealing to you your weakness and

GOD TX THE OLD TESTAMENT. sni

nothingness. Jesus is cleansing and sanctifying and
comforting and strengthening you. He is saying
iifresh to you to-day, " Tuy sins are forgiven thee."

GOD IX THE OLD TESTAMENT.

In the character of God, as described by Moses
and the prophets, there are two elements \Yhich it
is difficult to combine — that God loves the sinner,
and God ahhors evil. God is justice, holiness, and
truth. At the same time He is infinite tenderness,
mercy, and compassion. It is difficult to know
which element is brouo;ht out most stronrfy in the
Old Testament. Where will you find such ex-
pressions as you find in Moses, the Psalms, and
Prophets, about the tenderness of God, (if I may
so speak,) the sufi*erings of God ? " You have
ivearied Me with your transgressions." '' How
shall I give thee up, Ephraim ?" ''Oh, that My
people had hearkened unto Me, I should soon have
subdued their enemies," &c. And the same tender-
ness and compassion which is manifested in Jesus,
is also in Jehovah, Jesus sighs and weeps over
the ravao'es of sin, and over human sufterinsf. It
is what Jehovah does in the Old Testament. If
the holiness and compassion of God are to be
reconciled, it is evident that the sword must fall
upon some one, and how wonderful it is, when we
see in Jesus, God and man, the love and holiness
of the Father, the tenderness and compassion of
the Father — unite, and in our nature, for our
good, in our stead.

A A

362 UNION OF CHRISTIANS.

UNION OF CHRISTIANS.

The union of Christians is marred not by giving
too much importance to little things, but by not
keeping sufficiently prominent' the great things.
Did it ever strike you that the early Christians
also diflfered on minor points, for which now-a-days
it would be thought quite necessary to make a new
sect ? but they were so absorbed in thinking that
they knew God as their Father, that Jesus was
their Saviour, that they were possessors of the
Holy Ghost, that nothing could separate them.
Thus it is that when we go to a meeting where
Christians meet as Christia7is, we feel as if we lost
our asthma, we can breathe.

Christianity without Christ does not exist.
There is nothing in it, except as you connect it
with the living, risen One in heaven.

JOY PRECEDES PEACE.

The first thing that God gives us is joy, and
then out of this joy comes calmness, fortitude,
equanimity. Paul says, " Rejoice in the Lord,
and again, rejoice" — and then afterwards, "Be
careful for nothing." It is perfectly correct that
we have joy and peace in believing, but joy comes
first. How can I be in peace, and calm, and quiet,
in the midst of all that disturbs me, unless I know
that I have something much better, and more
glorious ; unless I know that I have found the pearl
of great price, that I possess a better country, that
is a heavenly ?

THE WONDERFUL LOVE OF GOD. 308

When we first believe in Jesus, joy fills our
hearts ; we are delighted, astonished ; — how beauti-
ful, we say. Then comes peace. God will console,
will keep, will strengthen ; and in all after diffi-
culties it is the same. Let the joy of God fill our
hearts, and we are at peace. Therefore the only
ordinance that is of continual recurrence in the
church is festival, not fast, so that in the w^ilderness
we sing praises and give thanks, because all is of
grace. God is indeed our portion ; but it requires
faith to rejoice in God. If we can in any wise
take hold of this, *' God is mine " — only think of
it ! — then surely we shall rejoice.

THE WONDERFUL TENDER LOVE OF GOD.

Let me ask you, Have you ever thought of
this wonderful, tender love of God ? God has to
be so gentle and tender with us, to put away
everything that can ruffle our hearts or minds,
to speak to us as it were with hushed breath, to
have the tenderness of a nurse dealing with the
jDCevishness of a little child. He touches us with
the delicacy and tenderness with which you would
touch one, covered with wounds and sores. God
invites us so simply ; just asks us to turn round to
Him, as if He existed for us. Can any one say
to God, " True, you invited me, but in such a way
that it hurt me. I knew you would receive me,
but I thought it would be with fault-finding " ?
Can any one say that ? It is wonderful how God
says to us, " Only come to Me, only turn to Me,

364 GOD AA'D SATAN,

only give Me a look," and if we look unto Him
He receives us.

The Kock of Ages, Jesus, is not of yesterday ;
His goings forth were of old. " Before Abraham
was, 1 am." By Him the world was created, and
before creation the Eternal Wisdom was with th(^
Father, and was His delight. Older than time,
stretching back into eternity, '' Jesus Christ is the
same, yesterday, to-day and for ever."

In the Eternal Counsel of God, before the
foundations of the world were laid, He was the
Lover of mankind, and in the fullness of time He
went forth, full of compassion, and died npon the
cross for sinners, that He might give eternal life to
all the poor and needy that put their trust in Him.

GOD AND SATAN.

God draws ; Satan only tempts. All the evil
influences which prevent our approach to God do
not deserve to Ix' compared with the attractive
power of God. 1 dare not speak lightly of the
innate love of sin and the world, or of the tendency
of fallen human hearts to gravitate to the earth,
or of the force of habit, or of the fascination of that
enchanted ground, this present age, which lulls
us to sleep, or of the subtlety and power of Satan.
No ; these are great and potent influences, but
nothing when contrasted with God. Satan, and all
evil under and with him, cannot prevail. Satan is
puwerful, but not omnipotent; he is cunning, but
neither omniscient nor wise. He has an ally

GOD AND SATAN. 365

within us, even sin; but he has never yet under-
stood a human heart. God alone can search the
heart ; He ah)ne can draw it, can open, can melt,
can fill it. Satan has no right, no claim on me, on
my nature, on my will, on my affections. How-
ever wicked and polluted a human being may
be, it is not his nature to be evil. And though
he be so deo'raded as to feed the swine in the far
country, that dark citizen has no real claim on
him, and no true affinity with him. Man's heart
was created for the love of God, and will only be
happy there. The eye of . His soul was made to
behold the sun, and to rejoice in the light. And
fallen though he be, his very mercy proves his
original grandeur. Let us remember that God
created man in His imao^e. Let us never foro;et
that at the right hand of God is the Man Christ
Jesus. Let us behold ourselves not in the wreck
and ruin of our fallen condition, not in the mirror
of the world and of Satan, but in the mirror
of the hope of the resurrection, when the purpose
of God will be fulfilled in us, and we shall be con-
formed to the imag-e of His Son. When the trans-
forming power of the precious blood of Christ shall
be made manifest on the resurrection morn, then
shall arise, with transfigured and spiritual bodies,
true human beings full of love and truth, without
a single spot, blemish, or wrinkle, holy ond pure,
like Christ. If it be so, look upon evil as judged,
condemned, and slain ; upon Satan as bound and
cast out. He cannot draw, he cannot reach the

366 THE JEWS.

iamost depths of yourself; he has no right over
you ; he has no power except the power you give
him. Only resist ; only show your face as conscious
of your Divine origin ; only adore God, and Satan,
powerless and abashed, will flee from you. There
is no real connection between us and Satan.

Ah ! how different it is with God ! He is the
Magnet. We are His offspring. He is able to
dtvell m us, and to make us dwell in Him. He
draws with an irresistible power, and yet He does
not force or compel us ; He sets us free when His
love subdues our heart. He restores us when He
takes possession of our souls. He is our rightful
Lord ; He alone is the King whose it is to rule,
and His rule is love.

THE JEWS.

There is a Book different from all other books.
There is a nation different from all other nations.
There is a Man different from all other men.

There are about seven millions of Jews existinof
at the present time. That they are the descendants
of Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, is beyond all
doubt and question. Other nations have passed
away. Though speaking the various languages of
the world, and accommodating themselves to the
various usages and customs of the nations among
w^hom they live, they have sustained their national
peculiarity, not merely their physical, but still
more their mental and spiritual features. That
they exist is a miracle ; but that they are what
they arc is still more w^onderful. In the field

FAITH AND PRAYEB, 367

of abstract thought they produced a Spinoza ; in
music, a Mendelssohn ; in poetry and light literature,
in politics, in the exact sciences, in every branch
.of thought and modern civilized life they have
shown themselves quite able to compete with any
nation.

FAITH AND PRAYER.

Amen is the voice of faith. We must pray not
only in the name of Christ, but pray believing that
we shall receive our requests ; faith and prayer are
almost the same. The vibration of faith is prayer,
the music of faith is prayer, faith is the very soul
of prayer. When faith becomes vocal, that is
prayer. Take the case of Elijah : "As the Lord
God of Israel liveth, before whom I stand, there
shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according
to my word." James (v. 17) explains the matter.
Why have we so little faith in prayer ? Because
we keep that old philosophical idea, that prayer
influences us, and not God ; that it was all settled
long ago, and our praying will make no difference ;
that we should pray and relieve our minds, pray
till we are soothed. If that is true there need be
no God to pray to. We might as well pray to the
air. Prayer is to influence God. We must look
on prayer as pre-ordained from all eternity by God
to be a law, a force in the world, as much as any
other force in nature or in history. Prayer is a
link in the wonderful chain fixed in God's own
love, on the one hand, and in man's action, on the
other.

368 GENIUS AND SPIRITUALITY

GENIUS AND SPIRITUALITY.

The natural or merely psychical man does not
understand sphitual things. He deems them foolish-
ness ; earth and the lower sphere of reason and
feeling satisfy him. But among the psychical men
are some who break through the circle of nature
and science into a hig^her reoion. We call these
men of genius. But with all their power of thought
and imagination, they cannot lift themselves above
"the world." Faith alone is tlie victory which
overcometh the w^orld. The Spirit of God alone
changes ns into spiritual m(3n. Genius is often, to
the more thoughtful and noble-minded, the substi-
tute for God's revelation. The}^ know and love
that which is " spiritual." And in many views and
exj^ressions there is necessarily a similarity between
the man of genius and the spiritual man, because
lioth are opposed to the lower sphere of the visible.
But there is a, radical opposition between the
psychical man who has not the mind of Christ, and
the spiritual. And as the age advances, the cod-
flict between Christ's Church and the world will
become more what it was in the Apostolic times;
between the foolishness of God and the wisdom
of man. Paganism, the w^orship of the created
(spirit) — the self-sufficiency of man, axjTapxsia —
man, being a god to himself — is the spirit of the
world. Hebraism, or Jehovahism, and Hellenism,
are the opposing principles.

THE BODY NOT THE SOURCE OF SIN. 369

THE BODY NOT THE CHIEF CENTRE OR SOURCE
OF SIN.

There is no opposition Ijetween body and
spirit ; Christ has a body now, and yet He is
Spirit. His body also is spiritual, full of glory,
light, and power. There are spirits without bodies,
and some of them are devils. " Carnar' is often
coufounded with bodily. Views are sometimes
suspected as ''carnal" which are scriptural and
spiritual. " The end of all God's ways is embodi-
ment," is a fruitful saying of Otinger. God prepares
a body for Christ. There is a place of glory for
the glorified ; there is an outward and visible
kingdom yet to appear, ushered in by signs aod
wonders, even as there is a spiritual and invisible
kingdom, which cometh not with observation. The
two kino'doms are one.

o

THE APOSTLES MADE NO CONCESSIONS TO IDOLATRY.

The commission to teach all nations shows the
universality of His power and claim, the unity
of the race, the final conquest of the world. And
so the Church planted by Christ is to be filled
with love to all men. The commission is to teach.
The Word of God is the lesson. This teaching or
preaching was the great commission of the Church.

It was the highest office of an Apostle. Both
Apostolic missions and modern missions have
proved that there is no nation so sunk in idolatry
and vice, so degraded and ignorant, but the Word
of God is able to penetrate the darkness, with
enlightening and healing power. The Word is

370 NO CONCESSIONS TO IDOLATRY.

the sword ; let it not be sheathed and rendered
powerless, in the ceremonies and traditions and
concealments of human adaptation and policy.
The truth can make all men free ; we have no
right to bring them into our intermediate region
of tutelage and bondage. How flimsy appear the
defences of pictures and ceremonies, when con-
sidered in the light of Scripture ! Did the Apostles,
coming to idolatrous, rude, and uncultivated tribes,
find it necessary to have recourse to images and
ritual ? Did they think it wise and right to keep
the people in a state of infantine passiveness and
mechanical obedience ? Did Paul present to the
idolatrous Ephesians half-truths, and give them
a scanty instalment of the doctrines of life ? No ;
he declared to them the whole counsel of God.
The Church is a witness and light sent by Christ,
and the Word, which she hath received from her
Lord, she giveth to the world. The Church is
where the Word of God is. The Reformers spoke
very clearly and emphatically on the true character
of the Gospel ministry.

THE APOSTLES.

Next to Christ Himself, there is nothing more
wonderful than these Apostles. A general shows
his discrimination, shows that he is a general, by
apyjointing suitable men to different positions.
The Lord Jesus set apart twelve men. He waited
for the Father to send them to Him — men who
should do His work after He had departed ; so
they had always to be with Him, because the}'

THE APOSTLES. 371

were to be witnesses for Him ; pillars on which
the Church is to rest ; great soldiers who should
go forth without swords to fight great battles.
They were also to perform miracles. Jesus waited
till His Father sent them to Him, and then He
thanked God for them. He chose them with
infinite wisdom. There was great variety of
character among them, but one thing attaches to
them all, even to Judas — great energy and decision.
Very various are their characteristics ; Peter warm-
hearted and excitable : John and James, called the
sons of thunder, very ambitious, but it was a
good ambition ; they wanted to sit one on the
right hand and the other on the left hand of
Christ in His Kingdom ; and wdien asked if they
could be baptized with His baptism, they said,
We can." There was Nathanael, called also
Bartholomew ; and Thomas, melancholy by the
very force and intensity of his love. Of some
we know nothing ; let us learn from this that
some do work, which no one knows about ; it is
not to be talked about ; but still, if we only stand
on the muster-roll of the great Master, it is there.
Judas was also chosen? Why? What blessed
lessons we have here ! Xo one can fall into false
security who remembers that, even among the
twelve Apostles, there was Judas. Already had
Christ said, ''Ye shall sit on tw^elve thrones, judging
the twelve tribes of Israel." Could Judas not say,
" There is a seat for me as well as for the rest " ?
Dear friends, we may be among the number of
the disciples, hear the precious promises, but still

a

372 THE APOSTLES.

we need the warning to be careful and watchful,
" working out our own salvation with fear and
trembling." There is no such thing as a title-deed
way to heaven. We can't see our title clear,
except hy constantly looking to Jesus. What
affection Jesus bore them ! He was like a mother
to them. He sometimes rebuked them for their
ignorance and slowness of heart. Yet, notwith-
standing all the sorrow they gave Him, how He
treated them ! He always left them at liberty.
" Will ye also go away ? " He had fastened them
to Himself. How He delighted in them ! How
eager He w^as to praise them ! Learn how mag-
nanimous He is, notwithstanding all our faithless-
ness and sin. The Lord Jesus trusts us. He
wants to bring out the peculiar grace and treasure
Lie has entrusted to each of us. " Whom say ye
that I am?" He expects their answer will dis-
tinguish them from the rest — they will have a
different view of Jesus, the Son of man.

"the world."

The world is often spoken of, and it is an expres-
sion that is used very superficially ; but we should
know what it means. God loves the world ; it
is very beautiful and very good. Not nature only,
but the various institutions among men ; God has
Himself created the family, the government, the
power with which He has gifted man, his intellect
and imagination, and the powers which result from
the combination of men. God loves all this. He
honours it, and stands by it. Whenever we see

THE world: 373

anything orderly, sensible, disciplined, it is of God,
even though it be among the unconverted. There
is a sense in which God loves the world — science,
art, politics, and knows all that is going on. There
is a sense in which God hates the w^orld — all that is
sinful, unholy, impure. So far as the world is
based on God's creation, He loves it; so far as it
is based on the hdl. He hates it.

The first danger is, to say that all material things
are worldly — science, art, commerce, army, navy, &c.
Not so ; they are God's institutions. He is not an
enemy but a friend to them, and in this sense it
is the duty of a Christian not to be cowardly, but
to go in and take possession. True ! it is a lower
sphere, but God has put us there, and He influences
us, by all around us. The Church is to keep separate
from that which is sinful ; but what is sinful ? We
must not think we are keeping separate from the
world, when we absent ourselves from a certain
society, and things in it. There was a time when
Christ said, " Get thee behind Me, Satan," so that
we may be in the society of Christ and His apostles,
and yet in the world. Ambition, lust, self-asser-
tion, cowardice, there are a thousand different
manifestations of the world, and from this '' w^orld "
you are to keep yourselves. You might steep
Jesus right into the world, and it would not affect
Him. He was not afraid of it, for wherever He
w^ent, He caused light and blessing, power and life
to aiise there. I know there is a great and
immense difference between Him and us, and
between different Christians too. We are to fight.

374 ^THE world:

not only against the world around us, but the
world within us, and in proportion as we overcome
the world within us, we shall be able to exert
a good influence on those around us. There is
such a thing as morbid scrupulosity ; there is a
disease among professing Christians, one that sees
small things appear large, and large things appear
small ; but Jesus never loses the right balance. A
Christian should be like a safety-lamp, able to go
into noxious vapours, and yet remain separate
from them, by prayer, humility, and the love of
Christ — he himself giving light, and yet being in
safety, undisturbed, untouched by them. The
Church is compared to fire in the midst of water,
sheep in the midst of wolves, holiness in the midst
of sin, heavenliness in the midst of earthliness ; it is
wonderful, how the Lord does preserve His Church.
There is only one Church ; and Jesus, the Son of
God, is the foundation on which it is built. When
I was baptized, I did not think I was baptized into
any particular sect, but into the Church of Christ,
and it is blessed to remember that all faithful
disciples make up one great and glorious body. . . .
Jesus sends us that we, as human beings in the
different places assigned to us, should show forth
the mind and the will of God. I know it is difti-
cult, dear friends, but God encourages us in it all.
Why did Jesus live thirty years upon the earth,
unknown to any but as the carpenter, a good son,
a kind brother, industrious, One who adorned His
profession of faith in God ; as One who studied and
exemplified what He described in the Sermon on

THE world: 375

the Mount ? Love, He tells us, is the fulfilling of
the law. As Pascal has said, **No amount of
matter can produce thought, no amount of thought
can produce love ; as thought is above matter, so
is love above thought." So let us strive to love,
for love comes down from God the Father, through
Jesus, by the power of the Holy Ghost ; therefore
we must abide near to Jesus.

Love is the enemy of the world — which is wilful
and self-concentrated. If we walk in love we must
overcome the world, both within and around us.

PREACHING CHRIST ACCORDING TO THE SCRIPTURES.

The first thing that strikes us is, that we preach
a Person. We hear the voice ; we behold the
countenance of a Person. "I am the Lord."
" Look at Me." " Keturn unto the Lord thy
God." " I am thy Shield, and thy exceeding great
Reward." In all Old Testament history we behold
God ; not Deity, an abstraction, a Divine power —
but the living God ; not God hidden in impene-
trable darkness — but God, as in condescending love
He seeks and saves man, making known His name
and showing His face. In the New Testament the
same supreme, central, and ail-pervading position
which is given to Jehovah in the Old is assigned
to a Person, whose name is Jesus. (2) If we preach
a Person, and, as need scarcely be added, a Divine
Person, for it is inconceivable that the messenoer
of God to man should be a creature ever so exalted
and perfect, we cannot truly understand Christ,
except by Divine revelation. No man can under-

37G FREACHING CHRIST.

stand Christ — even since Christ has lived and died ;
and without the help of the New Testament Scrip-
tures — unless He is revealed to Him also by the
Spirit. Here lies the source of all pseudo-Christi-
anity. A Divine person is understood only by a
Divine revelation, of which Scripture is the record
without, and the Holy Ghost the illumination
within. To preach Christ means to preach Christ
according to the Scriptures. (3) If Christ is a
Person, the Son of God, and if He is to be preached
according to the Scriptures, then to preach Christ
means to preach Christ crucified. The death of
Christ as an atoning sacrifice is the very centre
and heart of preaching Cheist. The Cross of
Christ is the meaning of all ; the central point
from which radiates Justification, Sanctification,
and the Future Glory. God hath given to us the
ministry of reconciliation ; and by reconciliation
nothing else is meant but the expiatory substitutive
death of Christ. This is the Gospel.

To the world our message is — Christ crucified :
to the believer — Christ risen. The crucifixion
took place before the world ; the resurrection, in
secret. It is perfectly true that if Christ had not
risen, the Gospel would neither be true, nor would
it be a living and vitalizing power ; but the Gospel
itself is — ChPvISt died for the Ungodly. The
sio^nificance of the resurrection is that Jesus, the
Christ, our Substitute, was raised. He lives and
sees His end, because His soul was made an
ofi'ering for sin. He shall divide the spoil with
the strong, because He poured out His soul unto

PREACHING CHRIST, ^11

death. " 1 am He that liveth, and was dead, and,
behold, I am alive for evermore." The glory of the
Risen Lord as Prophet and royal Priest can only
be seen in the light of Golgotha. Even the glori-
fied saints cry, " Thou wast slain, and hast redeemed
us to God by Thy blood." Preaching Christ cruci-
fied is the only way in which His life and ministry
can be understood. The glory of Christ's life was,
that for the glory of the Father and the salvation
of sinners He became man, and having become
man, went in the path of humility ; always looking
forward to, and at last enduring, the death of the
Cross. In this light alone we truly behold the
Lamb without spot and blemish. Thus we are to
preach Christ crucified ; not to the exclusion of His
life, but to the inclusion and true possession of all
that is in Christ. (4) For we preach not the cruci-
fixion of Christ, but Christ Himself. Christ
yesterday, to-day, and for ever. Christ as Prophet,
Priest, and King; Christ in His humiliation, and
Christ in His glory ; Christ the Lamb fore-ordained
before the foundation of the world, foretold by the
prophets, welcomed by the godly in Israel — a
Person, true man and yet true God, in whom we
possess the Father, and from whom we receive the
Spirit.

In preaching Christ, three things are to be borne
in mind — (1) Christ is absolutely necessary. (2)
Christ is absolutely sufficient. (3) Christ is
absolutely accessible.

Modern preaching lacks power mainly in this
fundamental point — that Christ is absolutely neces-

B B

378 PREACHING CHRIST,

sary. The grandeur of the Eemedy cannot be seen,
unless we know something of the depth of the Fall.
This expression — the wrath of God — is an expression
most obnoxious to the present age. True ! God is
love ; but that very love must hate sin. He is a
consuming fire. Thus it was that Christ died not
the death of a martyr ; but He felt death in its
penal connection with sin. The severity and love
of God were revealed in the Old Testament, but
made bright and intense in the New. It is from
the lips of Jesus we are taught the judgment of
everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord.
Christ is absolutely sufficient both for the present
and the future. Our adoption is not merely legal,
but real. Everything is given us with Him, and each
believer has an everlasting and blessed existence.
And Christ is accessible. What appears easy in
theory however is difficult in practice. There is
the difficulty of taking in the idea of Feee
Grace — the dread of contact with God; the
shrinking from having anything definitely con-
cluded between God and us. The Church of Eome
has illustrated these three tendencies. She places
the narrow path, good work, ceremonies, &c. before
the strait gate ; she places God and Christ at a
great distance, with mediation between ; and in-
stead of giving present salvation, she substitutes an
indefinite hope in herself, after thousands of years
of purgatory. There is no difi*erence between Jesus
on His heavenly throne and Jesus when on earth.
This is the glory of Jesus at the right hand of God,
that He rcceiveth siiniers. He is now a merciful

AS LITTLE children: 379

and compassionate High Priest. The name He
bears, Jesus, means, in the words of David, " He
shall redeem Israel from all their iniquities."
Christ is absolutely essential ; He is all- sufficient ;
He is willing to receive sinners. This is the
message of the preacher.

"except ye become as little childken."

1. Look first at the docilitij oi childhood ! It is
constantly being taught, corrected ; rules and laws
are given to it which are received with all
simplicity, without thinking them strange or
hard ; and the continual influence of a stronger
mind and more powerful will does not raise up
a wall of separation between the child and its
teacher ; but, on the contrary, is a sweet link of
afi"ection, the strength of which nothing can
weaken, and the sweetness nothing can embitter.
How soon do we lose it ; how impatient are we
that God should be a continual influence in all our
ways and works, that He should be brought into
the minutest details of our life ; with what a bad
grace do we become disciples, learners ; how far
from the docility of little children !

2. The earnestness of childhood. A superficial
observer would say it was not so ; that a child is
fond of mirth and lauohter, has no care for the
morrow. That is true ; but it is also true that
the characteristic of childhood is solemnity and
earnestness. Have you ever noticed how solemnly
they will listen to a history of self-sacrifice, loyalty,
and love ; how easy it is for them to believe in

380 'EXCEPT YE BECOME

things spiritual and eternal ; how simple and
direct their faith in God ; how they at once apply
the rules of the Word of God to the course of life
before them ; how immediately they expect an
answer to prayer ? How different is it afterwards
when we have grown wise and become young men
and women (and our young men and women are
the most sophistical portion of the human race) ;
how w^e pride ourselves on our knowledge that we
understand the motives of men 1 To the things of
God we become calm, languid, sceptical, undecided ;
and to the things of the world, prejudiced, eager,
excited, intoxicated. *' Except ye be converted,
and become as little children."

3. The hQ^wXiiivl franhiess and unsuspiciousness
of childhood. It does not see why it should
disguise its thoughts and feelings ; or why it should
have such deferential reverence to a rich man or a
learned man ; it breathes as yet the fresh air of
the woods, instead of the sickly scented air of our
civilization ; it distinguishes the excellent and the
beautiful, whatever shape it may wear. How
different it is afterwards 1

4. The helplessness of childhood. A little child
is so conscious of its helplessness ; it is so easy
for it to be humble ; to say thank you, to appeal
to you to do an act of kindness ; it is not
difficult to stoop ; its natural attitude is sitting
at the feet of the Master and those representing
HinL

5. A child lives in the present, is not anxious
for the morrow; a disappointment does not crush

AS LITTLE children: 381

it ; it springs back again, because the undercurrent
of its life is joy and confidence.

6. In childhood there is a distinct idea of
Divine justice. Tell a child a story in which the
wicked go unpunished, and it is disappointed ; its
tiny conscience rebels, and there is no dilKculty in
feeling that the motive of punishment is love, and
so it is able to return again with perfect confidence
to the love and tenderness of its father, knowing
that love is the deepest of all parents and teachers.
Are your children teaching you ? — for only then
will you be able to teach them. Many will say I
am idealizing ; of course I am. What is the use of
the Bible if we could not idealize ? To see beneath
the surface must be given to us by the Spirit of
God. What I have said does not exist in any
child in perfection, nor alone, but is mixed with
much that is not beautiful, but ugly, the con-
sequence of our sinful, fallen condition. Remember
what Christ says, ^' as little children,'^ humble,
docile, not self-reliant, believing in the love of God
spite of all chastisement and affliction ; joyous in
His favour, rejoicing to serve Him ; knowing that
to serve Him is perfect freedom.

7. Let us look at the limitation of childhood,
Paul refers in one instance to his childhood in that
wonderful chapter on love — 1 Cor. xiii. 11. Let us
remember that we are but little children in relation
to God and eternity, and therefore I am not
astonished that in the Bible there are many
doctrines I cannot comprehend, many sentiments
I cannot reconcile. Why should we be alarmed

382 'EXCEPT YE BECOME.

or have our faith shaken by our difficulty in
comprehending the whole counsel of God ? On
the contrary, it is at once an exercise and a
confirmation of faith. If the Bible was not
wonderful, I could not believe it; if it was not
mysterious, I could not accept it ; if it was not
great, I could fathom it, but now it f^ithoms me.
We are little children. God is our Father, and
tlie Bible His Word. If I only know that I am
His child, then it is eas}^ to believe, in spite of
all that is mysterious, but not because of it.

8. The contrast of childhood. We are told in
malice to be children ; but in understanding, in
courage, in loyalty, in service, we are to be men,
not tossed to and fro by every wdnd of doctrine.
Let us beseech you, in the name of the Apostle who
thus writes, and of the Lord who inspired him, to
quit yourseh^es like men. It is taught us in
Scripture, and confirmed by the experience of the
Church, that where there is most of the simplicity
of childhood, there is the greatest manliness in the
service of Christ. What a blessed thing it is to
be a child of God ! It contains the humility and
simplicity of a little child, the ardour and earnest-
ness of youth, the peaceful security of old age
(1 John ii. 12 — 14). There is no true man but a
Christian ; but he is a true man, for he is infant,
youth, and old man all in one, because he is a man
in Christ Jesus.

Dear friends, are you the children of God ? Do
you love God as your Father? Is that world a
reality to you ? The children of the world are

AS LITTLE CHILDBEN.' 383

always saying that God is their Father ; but to
them it means only that they may do as they like —
hoard up wealth, fritter away the precious time ;
that it does not matter whether they love Jesus
or serve Him ; and they will secure themselves by
saying, ''God is a Father." I should not like to have
such a Father. If my Father is indifferent whether
I love Him or His Jesus, that is no Father to me.
Oh, repent, turn back from this miserable empty
life, that can only end in death [ Don't believe
there are any insuperable difficulties to be over-
come. God is willing and waiting to receive you.
Jesus is ready to welcome you. The Holy Ghost
is just at the door of your heart, that He may
enter in and cry Abba. Only be a sinner. Go
out of the circle of death unto Him who has said,
" Come unto Me." May there be none of us here
who are not members of that family who are
washed in the blood of Jesus, and renewed by the
Holy Ghost ! But we must be convinced of it even
now ; we cannot remain in doubt of such a thing,
but must immediately, when we see the heavenly
vision, without conferring with flesh and blood,
run into the open arms of the Father, that He may
enfold us, — to keep us in eternal security for ever-
more. May the Lord by the Holy Ghost give joy
to all His believing children, and convert all, for
they need conversion, who do not believe in Jesus !
Amen.

384

THE CHRISTIAN'S HOPE}

" Beloved,"now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear
what we phall be : but we know that, when He shall appear,
we shall be like Him ; for we shall see Him as He is." —
1 John iii. 2.

nOPE, like faith and love, is a grace given by God and
implanted by the Holy Spirit. Faith is the gift of
God. Love to Christ is the gift of God. Hope is the gift
of God. Hope is as essential as faith and love. In fact
there can be no real faith in Christ, there can be no real
love to the Saviour, unless they be accompanied by hope.
For what is it that we believe ? We believe that Jesus
has saved us. Saved from what ? From the wrath to
come. Saved us unto what? Saved us unto eternal
glory. Both the wrath to come, from which the Lord has
delivered us, and the eternal glory, wdiich is to be our
portion, are things of the future. We look forward unto
them in hope. If we believe in Jesus, we must have hope.
If we love Christ, we must have hope. For if we love
one and he is absent from us, our great desire is that we
may be united — that he may come again unto us, and
that he may then take us into such fellowship with him-
self that we can never more fall away from him — that
we can never more be separate. If a man says he loves
Jesus, and he is indifferent about the return of Christ, or
about heaven, or about being united with Christ evermore,
that man's words are vague.

•^ Preached on Sunday Morning, December 31, 1871, in St. Mark's
Presbyterian Church, Greenwich.

THE CHRISTIAN'S HOPE. 385

We have received eternal life, and yet we have not
received it. We are saved, yet we are only saved by
hope. We have received grace, and yet the Apostle
Peter exhorts us to be sober, and to wait for the grace
which is to be revealed nnto us at the coming of Christ.
We are made children of God, and yet the Apostle Paul
says we are waiting for the adoption, that is, the re-
demption of the body. We have received the great
salvation, and yet that salvation is only the end of our
faith, and shall be given to us at the coming of the Lord
Jesus Christ. We are glorified, because those whom God
hath called and justified He has also glorified ; for the
spirit of Glory is resting upon us ; and yet the glory hath
not yet appeared. We are looking forward unto it. So
that in all things, in every respect, beginning with the
most elementary manifestation of the grace of God, and
ending in that which is its consummation, we have already
the germ of the future ; but the fulfilment of that germ
we have not received, and, like all the creatures round
about us, we are groaning and travailing in birth — for our
own birth — that we should be made manifest in Christ.
When Christ shall appear, when Jesus Christ shall be
sent again from heaven in the hour which God has ap-
pointed, then shall we obtain the end of our faith, namely,
our perfect and full salvation. So are we bound up in
Christ, inseparably from Him, that all His history is as it
were repeated in us, and that we cannot be complete until
the whole object of God has been perfected in Him. When
we think of the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ, we say,
" We are saved," — '' Emmanuel, God with us " — and yet we
know tiat salvation is not complete. It has only begun.
For it is necessary that this child should grow, that he
should be obedient unto the law, that he should be the
perfect servant of God upon earth. When we think of what
Christ has been for thirty-three years upon earth we say,

386 THE CHRISTIAN'S HOPE.

" Here is our Representative ; here is the Lord our God
who saves us," and yet we know it is not complete ; for
it is necessary that He should die upon the cross. And
when we see Him upon the cross, then we say, " Here is
our salvation ! Here is the Lamb of God that taketh
away our sin " ; and yet we know that our salvation is not
complete ; for it is necessary that if He died He should
rise aofain from the dead. And when we see Him rise on
the third day, we say, " Behold Christ the first-fruits of
them that slept — the quickening spirit, — the Second
Adam." And yet we know it is not complete ; for He
must ascend again, and He must take up His position as
the Son of man at the right hand of God, there in heaven
to appear for us. And when we see Him at the right
hand of God, there, we say, " Behold the Lord our Right-
eousness ! We are seated together with Christ in heavenly
places." And yet then it is not complete ; for even Christ
Himself is looking forward, waiting and expecting, until
the time when He shall come again ; for then only shall
the purpose of God be fulfilled in Christ and in the Church.
When He shall be made manifest, we also shall be made
manifest with Him in glory. So, where Christ is, there
His servants are to be. We must follow Jesus Christ.

Now the promise that is given unto us is this — At
present it does not yet appear what we shall be. " We
shall be like Him," when Christ appears. And the reason
why we shall be like Him is because " we shall see Him
as He is." These are the two great promises given unto
those that love Jesus Christ, that believe in His Name,
and that have become the sons of God through faith in
Him. They shall be like Him, because they shall see
Him as He is.

Now, as we have seen already, this must have already
its beginning in us at present. To a certain extent we
must be like Christ even now, if we are to claim His

THE CHRISTIAN'S HOPE. 387

promise that we shall be like Him altogether. And to a
certain, extent we must see Jesus even now, if ours is the
promise that we shall see Him as He is. Therefore, what
is revealed unto us in the future is not something that is
unintelligible to us ; it is not something that is distant —
away ; but we have got already as it were the first-fruits
of that which we shall reap ; we have got already a fore-
taste of that enjoyment which shall be ours. We can
understand it, because we have already entered into the
possession of it, although we have not yet fully come to
possess it.

Now this morning we shall consider the one promise,
that we shall see Christ as He is, this being the ground
upon which He has built the other promise, that we shall
be like Him.

We shall see Christ as He is. There are two things
to be considered here : — first, the object of our vision —
Christ ; and secondly, the manner of our vision, and there
we must consider how we have it at present, and how we
shall have it in the future.

Whom shall we see ? Christ. We shall see Him as
He is.

Now we already see Christ at present by faith. God
reveals His Son Jesus Christ unto our souls, so that,
we know Him. But then we shall see Him as He is —
different from the way in which we see Him now. What
is it, then, that is at present imperfect in our vision of the
Lord Jesus Christ ? We see, the Apostle tells us, as in a
glass darkly ; but afterwards we shall see face to face.
Jesus Christ is revealed unto us in His words, and in our
experience and by the manifestation of the Spirit ; and it
is this same Jesus whom we shall see in the future.

Now let us first think of it in this light, that it is the
same Saviour whom we shall see. That is the same Jesus
Christ who is revealed unto us now in His Word, and who

388 THE CHRISTIAN'S HOPE.

is revealed unto us in our experience, whom we shall
afterwards behold. When the Lord Jesus Christ rose
from the dead, and appeared unto His disciples, He
manifested unto them the same grace and the same love
which they had experienced during the da3'S that He was
walking with them in the weakness of the flesh. There
was the same condescension, there was the same com-
passion, there was the same sympathy. He appeared
unto Thomas in condescension to the great weakness of
the faith of Thomas. He appeared unto Peter, and He
asked him, " Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou Me ? " He
argued with them; He reasoned with them; He explained
unto them the Scriptures. He not merely manifested unto
them that it was the same body which they had seen
dying on the cross, but He also gave unto them proof that
in His mind, tliat in His disposition, that in His character,
that in His dealings with them, it was the same Jesus of
Nazareth who had attracted them, who had taught them,
and who had borne for three years with such patience and
with such long-suffering all their weakness and all their
doubts. And, certainly, this is the great truth which is
to be held fist by us — that it is the Lord Jesus Christ
Himself, as He reveals Himself now to us by His Word
and by His Spirit, who is to be manifested unto us in the
future. There will be the same grace, there will be the
same sympathy, there will be the same tenderness ; and,
if we have experienced now, in the midst of our sins and
in the midst of the accusations of our conscience, and in
the down-pressing feeling of our unworthiness, how in
Jesus Christ there is nothing but grace and forgiveness
unto all those that come unto Him ; or, if we have
experienced in our weakness and infirmity, how the Lord
will be our strength in our affliction and our sorrow — how
Jesus Himself is afflicted in our affliction, and bears with us
as a compassionate and merciful High Priest ; all this shall

THE CHRISTIAN'S HOPE. 389

be the same when we shall behold Jesus Christ in glory
at His second coming, and through the ages that we are to
be with Him. It is the same Christ according to the Word
— according to the spiritual experience of the believer. All
the saints of God shall rejoice to find when they go to heaven
that all the promises of the Word and all the descriptions
of Jesus Christ in the Word are true, and that God has not
given unto us any other manifestation of Himself than that
which corresponds with the reality and with truth. But,
at the same time we cannot but feel that our knowledge
of Jesus Christ — our perception of Jesus Christ — is
defective ; that it is imperfect, that it is unsymmetrical,
and that it is dark. No person can say that he knows
Jesus. However much God may have given unto us to
see of Christ, however deeply we may have studied the
Scriptures, and however varied our experience may be of
the Saviour, it is impossible for any one of us to say we
know Christ ; but we all must say with the Apostle Paul,
that it is our great desire and our constant eftbrt that we
may know Him ; for in the Lord Jesus Christ there is the
whole fullness of the Godhead dwelling bodily, and in Him
there is given every manifestation of the character of
God ; so that we are not able to see all that is in Christ ;
•so that we can only study and gather together, as it were
by a laborious process, the different elements of the
character of the Lord Jesus Christ, and combine them in
our mind. We all must have experienced it when the
Spirit of God leads us into different aspects of Christ at
different times. For instance, sometimes we dwell much
in our thoughts and in our meditations, and, more than
that, it is deeply impressed upon our conscience and
upon our feeling, that Jesus is God — that He is the
Lord God ; that He is infinite ; that He is eternal ; that
He is the Word that was with the Father from everlasting ;
that He is holy; that He is omnipotent; that He is

390 THE CHRISTIAN'S HOPE.

omniscient; that it is impossible, as it were, to fathom
the fullness that is in Him. We are filled with the sense
of the grandeur and of the majesty of Christ. At other
times again we dwell upon the humanity of Jesus; we
remember that He was born of a woman ; that He was
a child ; that He grew ; that when He was a man He
hungered and thirsted ; that He was overcome with
fatigue ; that He sympathized in all things that were
good and pure, with those that were around Him. We
think of His benevolence, and of His affability, of all His
kindness, all His readiness to bless, to heal, to forgive.
And then we feel that the Lord Jesus Christ is indeed
the Lamb of God, that He is gentle, that He is tender;
that we can draw near unto Him with full confidence.
Now while we are thinking on the Divinity of Christ and
feeling it, and while we are thinking on the humanity of
Christ and feelino- it, we do not see Jesus as He is. We
have only a one-sided view^ of Christ, and a one-sided
feeling corresponding to that view of Clirist. He is both
God and man: He is both dreadful and awful in His
majesty, and gentle and tender in His grace ; but we
have only a one-sided impression, and a one-sided feeling.
We do not see Him as He is. Or again, if we think of
Jesus in all His activities, it is impossible for us to see
Jesus as He is — to take a comprehensive and therefore a
true view of Christ — what He is in relation to His Father,
the activities going upwards to God in the way of inter-
cession; wdiat He is towards the angels — what LCe is
towards the Church — what He is towards unbelievers
— what He is towards the inanimate creation. It is
impossible for us while we are fixing our mind on one of
these aspects, not to forget the others. We find it next
to impossible — exceedingly difficult — to allow everything
to have its just weight or just proportion. Or take the
names of Jesus which are the manifestation of what He is

THE CHRISTIAN'S HOPE. 391

— His name Jesus — Emmanuel, the Lord our Risrliteous-
ness ; His name Melchisedec, and the great number of
other names which God, in His great mercy, has revealed
unto us in order that we may study to see Jesus — to
know Jesus. Oh, who of us knoweth the name of tlie
Lord Jesus Christ ? We know something of different
names of His; but who of us has got the power of
combining them all ? So again His first coming and His
second coming. So again all the different types by which
He is revealed to us — His character as Abel — His character
as Enoch w^ho ascended to heaven — His character as
Noah — His character as Joseph, who, through suffering,
goes to glory — His character as Moses, the true mediator,
who speaks to God face to face — His character as Joshua,
wdio leads the children of Israel into the promised land —
His character as David and Solomon. Who is able to
comprehend all these ? In the history of the Church as
well as in the history of each individual, we find, at differ-
ent times, different aspects of Christ are held — true ia
themselves, but one-sided, defective. For instance, during
the time of Romanism — the beginning of it — they were
so impressed with the sense of the grandeur of Christ, the
majesty of Christ, the divinity of Christ, that they said,
"We cannot approach Him. He is so great. He is so
infinite, He is so glorious, He is so holy ; Ave are afraid to
go near unto Him. Perhaps the mediation of angels,
perhaps the mediation of saints who walk in closer com-
munion wdth Him, perhaps the mediation of Mary His
mother will be a help to us." Well now, the feeling that
prompted itself w^as quite a correct feeling ; but it was
one-sided. Jesus is very great. The Majesty of Jesus is
exceedingly awful. When w^e think of the Lord Jesus
Christ, the Eternal Word, the only begotten of the Father,
the appointed Heir of all things — when we read the
description of Christ as it is given to us in the Book of

392 THE CHRISTIAN'S HOPE.

Kevelation, surely we must all tremble ; we must all be
tilled with awe ; we must say, " Who is like unto Thee ? "
It is quite possible, dear friends, that we may be just as
one-sided, and just as defective both in our views and our
feelings, when we lay all our emphasis upon the meekness
of Christ, and upon His gentleness — when w^e do not think
of Him as the Lord and the Judge, as the great and
mighty One who is equal with the Father. But in this
they were wrong, that tliey did not see Jesus as He is,
namely, that they did not see the manifestation of the
glory of God in the mercy of Christ, in the willingness of
Jesus to receive all — in His saying, " Him that cometh
unto Me, I will in no wise cast out " — in the tenderness
with which He receives all those who turn from wicked-
ness, and are anxious to seek the living God.

Or again, view Jesus as the Justifier — as the Lord our
Righteousness. Some people are so fond of saying — ** It
is all finished " — everything is done for them. Yes, dear
friends, but then has everything been done in them ?
Jesus the Lord our Rii^hteousness is also the Lord our
Sanctilication. In that He died, sin was condemned in the
llesh, that we being acquitted might learn with the Lord
Jesus Christ to sutfer in the flesh ; that the life may be a
life of holiness, well pleasing in the sight of God. And
when we say we are justified by faith, do we also re-
member that before we are justified by faith we are
sanctiiied — we are set apart to be new, to be clean, to be
unblamable in the sight of God — that we are justified not
merely by faith, but by Jesus and by the Spirit of the
Lord God — that God never says a thing which is not a
reality, and that when God declares, " This man is just,"
He makes the man also justified ? When God declares
" This man I will look upon as My child," He makes him
also His child, endowing him with the new nature,
renewing him after the image of Christ, giving unto him

THE CHRISTIAN'S HOPE. 393

a hatred of sin, a love of that which is good and
holy.

Yes, dear friends, the great thing is to see Christ as
He is ; that is, to see the whole Jesus Christ. And this is
not given unto us here upon earth. We must always be
UDon our guard lest we become one-sided. Beinof one-
sided, dear friends, is not a matter of small importance :
it is a matter of vital importance. Here, on earth, we can
only strive to know the Lord Jesus Christ, but there we
shall see Him ; we shall see Him as He is. And this is
the most glorious promise that can be given unto us — to
behold Him in whom dwelt " the fullness of the Godhead
bodily " — to behold Him who is the delight of the Father,
whom to see is the Father's great joy from everlasting to
everlasting — to behold Him who seeks (?) His incarnation
especially as becoming the well beloved Son of God, to
whom God hath given to fulfil all His pleasure, and whom
all angels and all principalities adore. Look, dear friends,
and this is also one of our defectivenesses, one sign of our
departure, as it were, from the fullness, and from the
simplicity in Christ Jesus. When the Apostles speak of
the knowledge of Christ — of knowing Jesus by the gospel
— they cannot find words enough, they cannot find
illustrations enough to show the sense they have of the
grandeur, of the brightness, of the glory of the exceeding
great preciousness of that revelation of God in Jesus
Christ. To them the gospel does not seem such a simple
thing as it does to us, and such a tame thing, and such a
pale thing, and a thing which becomes tiresome and
tedious when you hear it often repeated ; but, on the
contrary, they cannot find words enough to express the
exceeding great brightness and glory of that revelation
which God has given unto us in the face of His only
begotten Son, Jesus Christ. The Apostle Paul says,
*•' What can it be now ? What terms shall be able to

c

394 THE CHRISTIAN'S HOPE.

express it ? With what words shall we be able to designate
that feeling and impression which we have got of the
glory of Christ ? If even the revelation of God through
Moses — if even the reflection of the countenance of God
upon the countenance of Moses — was so bright and so
splendid that the Israelites could not bear to see it, and
to look on the face of Moses, and he had to put a veil
upon his countenance by reason of the greatness of that
light, what will happen to us when we see the reflection
of God on the face of His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ
— when we see the reality of the glory of God in Him who
is the brightness of His glory, — the face of Christ the
Lord who appears unto us without a veil, but shows
Himself unto us that we may see Him face to face ? "

Now let me just appeal to3^ou. Answer this. Is there
anything in us corresponding to the feeling which dictated
those chapters in the Corinthians which we have read
together this morning ? Do you think it such an over-
powering and overwhelming glory to read in the Word of
God about Jesus the Son of God ? Do you think it such
a remarkable thing that you should hear of Christ — that
you should pray to Christ — that you should bend your
knee before the Son of God who has become man, and who
is your Saviour ? Ah, dear friends, how little do we feel
the power and the brightness of the glory of God in the
face of Jesus Christ, His Son ! How little trembling of
awe and of rejoicing is there in our souls when we think
of that simple truth, " God manifest in the flesh : the
Word became flesh, and dwelt among us" — when we think
of that blessed Name, the Name above every name given
unto the Lord, that at the Name of Jesus every knee
should bow in heaven and on earth and under the earth !
We shall see Him as He is. Oh, that we may have here,
at least, some things, some foretaste, some earnest of that
great revelation which shall there be made unto us of the

THE CHRISTIAN'S HOPE. 395

Lord Jesus Christ in the fullness of His perfection, and in
the fullness of His character !

Now there is a difference not merely in the object that
we behold — Christ Himself and the whole Christ, but
there is a difference also in the manner of our beholding
Him — the manner of our beholding Him. I have already-
indicated that here it is through a mirror ; and that here
it is by an effort ; and that here it is by faith ; and that
here it is in scattered rays which have to be combined.
But there it shall be vision, an immediate, easy, joyous
beholding of the Lord in His ftdlness. The Apostle speaks
of the veil — the veil of Moses that is taken away. Unto
the Jews there v/as a two-fold veil. In the first place,
there was a veil on the face of Moses, and then there was
a veil on their hearts. That is to say, the revelation of
God was a defective one in the Old Testament times.
That veil is taken away, and God has revealed Himself
now without veil in the face of Jesus Christ, His only
begotten Son. No man hath seen God at any time but
the only begotten of the Father — He hath revealed Him.
God has taken away the veil : God has revealed Himself
exactly as He is in the face of Jesus Christ of Nazareth
— in His life upon earth, in His death on the Cross, and
His resurrection from the dead. " He that hath seen Me,
hath seen the Father." Oh, what a wonderful thingr it is
that when we read the sweet story of old — the Bible
narrative of the life of the Lord Jesus Christ — we behold
there, God ! This is God. This Jesus reveals unto us the
Father. E/ery word that He speaks is an echo out of the
heart of the living God. Everything that He does, every
truth that He proclaims, .every manifestation of His
character He gives, is all a revelation of God. He and
the Father are one. God dwelleth in liorht that is un-
approachable and full of glory, but He has sent Jesus
Christ to reveal unto us, and we behold the glory of God

306 THE CHRISTIAN'S HOPE.

in Him as the glory of the only begotten, full of grace
and truth. Here in itself there is a test of the state of
our mind. But the second veil was the veil that was on
their hearts. The first veil was that the revelation itself
was a defective one. God spoke by the prophets at
sundry times and in divers manners with a veil. Now
God speaks by His Son without a veil. But the second
veil was on their hearts ; that is, the veil of sin, the veil
of selfishness, the veil of woildliness, the veil of unbelief,
so that they did not see even the imperfect revelation, as
now when they are reading the Law the veil is still on
their hearts. And the second veil is also on the heart of
every unregenerate and unconverted person. Why, dear
friends, is the Gospel not plain, not intelligible, not
attractive, not easy ? Why then do so many people not
understand it ? God has taken away the veil. The face
of Christ shines forth with splendour and glory. Then
why do not people understand it ? Because there is a
veil on their hearts. Who puts that veil there ? " If
our gospel is hid" — if the message which we declare is
not understood — if it is not accepted — if Christ is not
seen in the Word, what is the reason ? What is the
reason ? The Apostle explains it to us ; and he, being
inspired of God, explains it to us truly. It is that the
devil binds people by sin, by worldliness — that he blinds
them, and prevents them from looking at Christ lest they
should see the glory of God in the face of His Son, and
seeing that glory, should repent and turn from sin unto
the Lord their God. That is the reason — not that the
gospel is not plain. " If our gospel is hid, it is hid to
them that are lost," whom the god of this world, Satan,
blinds, lest they should see the glory of God in Clirist.
Now, both these veils are taken away. The one was taken
away eighteen hundred j^ears ago, when God sent Jesus
into the world. The other is taken away by the power of

THE CHRISTIAN'S HOPE. 397

the Holy Ghost, when we individually are turned unto the
Lord. Therefore there is a behohhng of Jesus. And
this shows unto us that the seeing of the Lord Jesus
Christ is something that depends not merely on the object
that is presented before us, but also on the state of him
that is to behold. And thus we see that when we come
to be with the Lord Jesus Christ, there shall be the
perfect beholding of Jesus, because our hearts shall be
perfectly delivered from that veil which is now upon
them. As the Lord Jesus Christ says, "Blessed are the
pure in heart, for they shall see God." Therefore, it is
the condition of the heart, it is our spiritual and moral
character in the sight of God, it is our faithfulness in that
which God has entrusted to us, it is our fighting against
sin, the world, and the flesh — it is this which is connected
with our beholding Jesus Christ even now upon earth.
But when we shall be perfectly delivered from the bondage
of sin and of corruption — when there shall be taken away
from us every weight, and that sin of unbelief which doth
so easily beset us — then shall we behold the Lord Jesus
Christ. We shall see Him, because He shall be manifested
unto us in all His completeness; we shall see Him per-
fectly because the veil shall be taken away from our
hearts, and everything that now hinders us from behold-
ing. We see now darkly, as through a glass. So even
the Apostle Paul had to confess. Now we can argue from
the greater to the less. If Paul had to make this con-
fession, how much more we ; because, only remember the
case of the Apostle Paul. He saw Jesus in the vision, not
merely as we do in the Word and by faith; but Jesus
appeared unto him. That vision of itself would not have
been sufficient, because, as the Apostle Paul explains it,
God revealed His Son in him. If Saul had merely seen
Christ in the heavens, and heard His voice, that would
never have converted him. What converted him was that

398 THE CHRISTIAN'S HOPE.

afterwards God by the Holy Ghost revealed in the heart
and conscience of the Apostle Paul that Jesus was Lord
and Christ, and that in Him alone forgiveness of sin and
eternal life can be obtained. Notwithstanding all this,
the Apostle Paul, with all his knowledge and experience,
and with all the wisdom which was given unto him, and
insight into the Word of God, confessed all his life that
the great object of his life was to know Christ; and then
he confesses that " here we see through a glass darkly, but
then we shall see face to face " : here we know only in
fragments, but " then we shall know even as we are
known." And therefore the seeing Christ as He is, is
something which is connected with our life and our
strength. And in this respect the use of the word in
Scripture is different from our use of the word. We do
not attach much importance to knowledge. We separate
between knowledge and what is to be produced by that
knowledge. We say a man may know a number of
things, and yet it may not be of any good to him. But
the idea which the Bible has of knowledge is something
not merely of the intellect, or of the imagination, or of
the memory. The knowledge of which the Bible speaks
is a thing which possesses the whole mind of man and the
whole character of man, so that the man that knows God
possesses God. Why is it made a promise throughout all
the prophets that the time is coming when all shall know
the Lord? "Then shall ye know the Lord." If that
knowledge was something merely of the intellect and of
the memor}^, what great benefit or boon Avould it be?
Why, it might only aggravate the guilt of man ; for we
all are aware of this, not merely to understand a thing in
our mind, and to remember a thing with our memory, if
it has no influence upon our character, is no real benefit,
but only an aggravation of our guilt. But when the
Bible speaks about knowing God, it means possessing

THE CHRISTIAN'S HOPE. 399

God. For instance, " This is our eternal life " — ivhat is
eternal life ? " That they should know Thee, the only true
God, and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent." Then this
is not merely a thing of the intellect, but it is life ; it is
vital; ifc is a new existence; it is something which will
change the whole man — this knowing the Lord.

Then, again, we are told that when we look unto the
Lord Jesus Christ we shall be healed. Then this seeing
of the Lord Jesus Christ is something that affects not
merely the eye, or the understanding, or the mind, but it
is somethincr which takes altogether from one state of
existence into another state of existence. " We shall
know Him even as we are known." What is the meaning
of that ? Oh, we are not able fully to understand what
the meaning of it is ; but the meaning of it is this, — that
we shall not merely see Christ, but by seeing Christ we
shall more and more become one with Christ. It is the
communion that subsists between Christ and the soul. It
is the knowledge that He is ours and that we are His, —
that all that we behold in Him is given unto us, — that
He has taken hold of us even as we have taken possession
of Him. That is the meaninsj of that seeincr Him. We
shall know Him even as we are known of Him. And
thus it is that the promise that is given unto us will have
an immediate effect upon us — that beholding Jesus Christ,
we shall be like unto Him.

Notice, dear friends, a thing which refers to all the
statements of the Bible. We take the words of the Bible,
and we understand them according to the common use of
the words which we make of them in our life ; and there-
fore we find it necessary always to put a codicil to them,
a caution, a supplement, to put them straight. But if we
understood the words of the Bible as they are, as God
wishes us to understand them, it would not be necessary
to put any such caution. For instance, — 'justification."

400 THE CHRISTIAN'S HOPE.

We explain the doctrine of justification by faith, and then
we must add, " But a man that is justified by faith will
lead a holy life." The Bible does not require that to be
added. It is a matter that explains itself, because from
the way in which the Bible explains justification by faith,
he cannot but lead a holy life. Again, the Apostle John
says, " Every one that hath this hope in him purifieth
himself, even as He is pure." We would say, " This hope
is set before you; it is a very glorious hope; but re-
member, you that have this hope ought to purify your-
selves." The Bible does not say " ought " at all, because
the Bible says if the man hath this hope he will purify
himself. " Every one that hath this hope purifieth him-
self, even as He is pure." And so it is with the knowledge
of God. If we understand it in the Bible sense, then all
the consequences of it, as they are in the Bible, will natur-
ally flow from it. He gives unto us salvation. How ?
Through the knowledge of His name — through the know-
ledge of His name. And therefore it is that, seeing Christ
as He is, we become like Him.

What is the inference from that ? That in proportion
as we do see Christ we must become like Him ; and in
proportion as we are not like Jesus Christ we have never
seen Him. It is not that you must add the second to
the first, but the first does not exist without it. As the
Apostle says, " If a man does not love his brother, he has
not seen God." He has " not seen God." What does he
mean by that ? He means by that, that if he has seen
God, he maist love his brother. We say a man has seen
God, but he does not remember that he also ought to love
his brother. The Apostle does not say that. On the
contrary, he says, " If a man does not love his brother, he
has never seen God." Oh that we may enter into the
reality of the Word of God I Oh, then we will find out,
dear friends, that we have a great many things to learn —

THE CHRISTIAN'S HOPE. 401

things which we fancied we learnt years ago. What is
the meaning of repentance? What is the meaning of
conversion ? What is the meaning of faith in Christ ?
What is the meaning of justification ? What is the
meaning of the new birth? What is the meaning of
beinof washed in the blood of Jesus ? Let none of us
think that we have learnt these things, for in the Word
of God the first and the last, the beginning and the end,
are all inseparably connected. And while we are in the
flesh, and while we are still learners and disciples upon
earth, this must be our great and our humble task day
by day — that we may know Christ — that we may k7Wiu
Christ.

And, ia conclusion, let me say a word unto any among
us who do not know Jesus, but who wish to know Jesus.
What description can one give of the terror and the
blackness and the misery of that second death, but simply
to say that you will be excluded from Jesus ? There must
be darkness there, because Jesus is the light. There
must be death there, because Jesus is the life. There
must be utter helplessness there, because Jesus is the way.
There must be intense ugliness there, because Jesus is
the beauty. There must be everything inhuman there,
because Jesus alone is the man in whom humanity can
be restored. What greater joy can there be than to
behold Jesus ? What greater misery can there be than
not to behold Jesus? Onl}^ think of that. However
little you may know of Jesus, take it for granted : believe
it on the testimony of God in His Word., and on the testi-
mony of all godly men that have ever lived : all is in
Jesus. All is in Jesus. To see Him is life and joy, and
not to see Him is unspeakable misery.

Now if a man wants to see Jesus — and even those
Greeks, with their imperfect knowledge, said unto Philip,
'' Sir, we would see Jesus." They had heard sufficient of

402 THE CHRISTIAN'S HOPE.

Jesus to arouse their curiosity. And you remember that
little man Zacchseus, who was anxious to see Jesus, — how
he overcame all difficulties. There was a sycamore tree,
and climbing up that sycamore tree, he was waiting
anxiously until Jesus should pass. And then see how the
Lord Jesus honours and rewards and acknowledges even
the slightest desire that is in the heart of a sinner towards
Him ; for when He came near to Jericho He looked up,
and He invited and commanded Zacchfeus to come down,
not merely to see Him, to catch a passing glimpse of Him,
but because Jesus wished to be his guest, and to abide in
his house. Oh, do try and find some sycamore tree to
catch a glimpse of Jesus ; and when the desire of your
heart is to see Christ, do not rest until that desire is
fulfilled, and until you behold Hiui, the Saviour, the
Sanctifier, and the Lord of life !

403

THE FEAST OF PENTECOST}

" And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with
one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound
from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the
house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them
cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them.'' —
Acts ii. 1 — 3.

rpHE two points which occupy our attention this morning
-*- are, in the first place, the Jewish festivals; in the
second place, the outward manifestations and signs which
accompanied the gift of the Holy Ghost.

When God in His condescension became the Creator, He
set into existence space and time. All space is to be filled
with His glory ; heaven and earth are to show forth His
wisdom and His power. Throughout the whole realm of
space the majesty of God is to be manifested from that
centre which He has Himself appointed. "The Lord hath
established His throne in the heavens, and His kingdom
ruleth over all." And as all space is to be filled with
God, so the Lord also is the Lord of all time. There are
ages — dispensations — of immense duration, aion after
aion. All those ages are to be filled with the music of
God ; and as God, the Creator, is the Lord of these ages,
so Jesus Christ, the Son, is the centre of the ages, and the
Holy Ghost is that Spirit wdiich proceeds from the Father
and the Son, who in all ag^es carries out the sovereio^n

1 Preached in the Tiiiiity Presbyterian Church, Ladbrooke Road,
Xottiug Hill, ou Suuday Morning, February 17, 1877.

404 THE FEAST OF PENTECOST.

counsel of God. From before the foundation of the world
the Lamb of God was ordained, and, therefore, of all the
immense space which God has called iuto existence, the
most important and beautiful spot is that little hill
outside Jerusalem where Jesus was crucified. And of all
the ages and dispensations which from before the throne
of God continue in succession, there is no time so im-
portant, which shall be remembered throughout all eternity,
as those thirty-three years when in the fullness of time
the Son of God lived upon the earth, and offered Himself
as a sacrifice to manifest the Glory of Jehovah. Now
when in the Lord Jesus Christ we have revealed to us the
full counsel of God, we are able to look upon all space
with a feeling of confidence and of homeliness, and we are
able to think of all the ages both which have gone before
and which are yet to come with rejoicing hope, knowing
that Jesus is the heir of all ages, and that throughout all
a^es there shall be ma'le manifest in the Church unto
all. the creation of God, the manifold riches of His grace
and of His power. When God created the world, He
created in six days, but He did not finish creation in six
days. It is a mistake to think that the world was created
in six days, and that after the creation was finished, the
seventh day was the day of rest ; for as you find it in the
second chapter of the Book of Genesis, it was the rest of God
which was the finishing of His works. It was on the seventh
day that God finished all His works ; but if God had only
created in six days, and if there had not been the seventh
day of rest, the works of God would have been incomplete.
He who out of His fullness went forth calling things into
existence, had to go back again into His fullness and to
take all those that He had created into His own bosom, that
within Himself they should have life and joy and peace ;
and therefore it is that the Lord hallowed the Sabbath Day,
for in that day were completed the works of God, and He

THE FEAST OF PENTECOST. 405

liaJ delight in all the things that He had made. And
when God afterwards brought the children of Israel, whom
He had chosen to be His own property, out of Egypt, the
house of bondage, He commanded them to remember the
Sabbath Day and to keep that holy, thus teaching them
that that Jehovah who had brought them out of Egypt,
the God of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob, was not merely
their God, but He was the God of heaven and of earth, and
therefore the Sabbath Day, as it commemorated the creation,
so it also brought vividly before them their redemption,
and was a sign between Jehovah and His people that they
were united together. And as God aiDpointed the seventh
day to be kept holy, so He appointed the seventh month to
be holy unto Himself. And in that seventh month there
was the feast of trumpets, and the beginning of the year,
and also the day of atonement. And as the seventh
month was holy, so the seventh year was holy, and the
earth was to rest from its toil and labour, and everything that
was brouo^ht forth of its own accord was to be free unto
the poor and unto the stranger, and even unto the beasts
of the field. And as the seventh year was holy, so the
seven times seventh year, the fiftieth year, was the year
of Jubilee, where again there was to be no labour, where
all debts were remitted, where all slaves and bondsmen
were emancipated, and where there was to be great joy
throughout the whole land, ushered in on the evening of the
day of atonement, that through the forgiveness of sin there
was now come the year of thanksgiving and of rejoicing
before the Lord. It was the seventh day, the seventh
month, the seventh year, and the fiftieth year, for 7 is the
holy number — 3, the number of God — 4, the number of the
world — 3, the number of Father, Son, and Holy Ghost — 4,
the number of the created thingrs, the four livinsf being^s,
the four rivers in the Garden of Eden, east and west, and
south and north, the four corners of the earth. Seven,

406 THE FEAST OF PENTECOST.

then, is the number of God in the creation, and thus the
whole time of the Israelitish nation was a time that was
filled with music. It was not like the wilderness, in which
there was no division, in which there was no break. It
was not like the maze, in which there was no organization.
It was not like mere sound, in which there was no rhythm ;
but it was filled with manifestation of God, and with the
music which makes glad the heart of man.

But besides these sevenths, the Jews had their festivals.
They had a festival, — a Passover, — when God brought the
children of Israel out of Egypt through the sheddiog of the
blood of the Paschal Lamb; and on the morrow after the
Sabbath of the Passover, as you remember, there was the
beginning of the harvest — the barley harvest — and the sheaf
was waved from earth unto God. And fifty days after that
there was the Pentecost, when the harvest was completed,
and when the two loaves, not of barley, but of wheat, not
without leaven, but with leaven, were presented unto the
Lord ; and asfain there was the feast of the tabernacles,
reminding the Jews of the time when they had been in
the wilderness living as it were in tents and booths. But
thank sg^ivins: unto God also was connected with that, for
the vintage was over, the fruit was gathered in, and also
the oil had been brought in. In all these festivals Israel
was to rejoice before the Lord.

Now before I pass on to the meaning of these festivals,
let me remind you of the character of these festivals.

In the first place, there was joy abounding unto the
people. God is the God of love, of benevolence, of
generosity. Although sin has abounded unto death, the
love of God abounds unto exceeding great joy. There
must be weeping for a night, but "joy cometh in the
morning." God wants us to be restored unto paradise, in
which there was fullness of pleasures from before His
presence ; and therefore the Jewish religion was a religion

THE FEAST OF PENTECOST. 40^

of gladness. There were few fast days. There were many
days in which the people were to rejoice before God.

Learn also that God wanted to impress upon Israel that
He was a God of wealth abounding. Never mind about
the land. God will take care of the land, and there will
be a three-fold harvest the year before the seventh. Never
mind about the fiftieth year. There will be no impoverish-
ing of the nation, for the Lord will abundantly make up
that which in obedience to Him is done unto Him, for God
wants His people to be generous. He does not wish them
to be narrow-minded and close calculators. He does not
wish them to think that profit and loss 'and political
economy are altogether governed by laws of supply and
demand, or the laws of nature, but He wishes them to
remember that the Lord is our Host, and that we are His
guests, and that He has provided for us a bountiful and a
liberal board, and He wants His people to be courageous
and enterprising and liberal, and to go forth with this
thought, " He who condescends to be our God and the joy
of our soul, will He not provide food for the body and
raiment to put on ? "

But notice, in the third place, all the festivals of Israel
had a three-fold aspect. They commemorated the past.
God brought us out of Egypt. God gave unto us the law.
God led us in the wilderness. But while they commemor-
ated the past, they realized the present existence of God.
*'We now rejoice before Him." This very day He loves
us, and looks down upon us. But while they thus realized
the present, they looked forward into the future, for all
these festivals were only types and shadows of the things
that were to come.

And now let me speak of the fulfilment. For "the
body is Christ " ; the substance is Christ, anticipated by
faith in the olden days, but noAV realized by us in a fuller
measure.

408 THE FEAST OF PENTECOST.

What is the Sabbath Day? "Come unto Me, all ye that
labour, and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."
This is the Sabbath Day. On the Sabbath Days the Jews
were not allowed to fast. If a fast-day happened to fall
on a Sabbath Day, it was postponed, for when we rest in
God how is it possible for us to be sad ? How can the
children of the bridechamber fast while the bridesfroom
is with them ?

Look at the Passover. On the Passover Jesus was
crucified. The Paschal Lamb was offered without spot
and without blemish. Not a bone of His sacred body was
broken. Exactly as the type had prefigured it, so was
He offered up unto God. And on the morrow after the
Sabbath Day He came forth the Sheaf, the Branch out
of the earth. He grew up as it were before Jehovah.
Such a man God had never seen before. Oh, what a
contrast between the first Adam and the last Adam !
" The first Adam a living soul ; the last Adam a quicken-
ing Spirit." Suffering and death were behind Him. He
had died once unto sin, but now He lived unto God.
Here is the glorious Head of humanity coming forth out
of the earth, a sheaf waved from the earth unto God, that
He might sit at the right hand of the Father. But not
merely was He this sheaf; He was the Kepresentative
Sheaf. Christ rose from the dead, the first-fruits of them
that slept. He rose out of the grave as our represent-
ative. He died for sins which were not His own; He
rose in order to be the Pighteousness of His people, and
in Him we also are raised and brought near unto God.
Oh, how beautifully is the Passover fulfilled unto us !
Christ our Passover is offered ; Christ the first-fruits of
the dead is risen. We are brought out of Egypt, the
house of bondage. We have been redeemed with the
precious Blood of the Lamb of God.

And on the fiftieth day came the Pentecost. On that

THE FEAST OF PENTECOST. 409

day the result of the harvest — the completion of the
harvest — was to be shown. As Jesus said, " If the corn
of wheat die not it abideth alone, but if it die it abideth
not alone, but bringeth forth fruit." As Jesus said when
He looked upon the fields, " The fields are white unto
harvest," so there were now the first-fruits of all the
creatures of God gathered in, in the one hundred and
twenty disciples — in the three thousand that believed and
that heard the counsel of God, and proclaimed in all the
various languages in anticipation of that final harvest
when round Israel all the nations of the earth shall be
gathered to praise and to magnify the Lord ; whereas the
feast of tabernacles remains still in the future, when all
the wilderness and pilgrimage shall have come to an
end, and when the Kingdom of God shall be established
upon the earth in outward manifestation and beauty.

Now the disciples knew that the Paschal Lamb had
been offered. They knew that Jesus had risen from the
dead. They were now waiting for the outpouring of the
Holy Ghost, but it did not happen until the day of
Pentecost was " fully come."

Let me go on now to remind you of those outward
manifestations and signs which accompanied the gift of
the Holy Ghost on the day of Pentecost.

There is one God ; and why should we be astonished to
find that one and same God everywhere, both in the
kingdom that is visible, and in the kingdom that is in-
visible? See how God did not allow Israel ever to
separate between the things which are seen and the
things which are not seen — how all those Jewish festivals,
although they commemorated the covenant dealings of
God with His people, were also in connection with the
natural seasons of the year — with the harvest which God
gave unto His people — with the outward blessings with
which He surrounded them. And therefore we find that.

p P

410 THE FEAST OF PENTECOST.

ill all Scripture the believing Israelite sees God near unto
him. It is the same God to him who appoints the sun,
the moon, and the stars — who gives food unto the ravens
that cry unto Him, and who divided the waves of the Red
Sea that His people might pass through them. Now do
not mistake it. The Bible does acknowledge the kingdom
of nature. The Bible does acknowledge that there are
laws of nature. If the Bible did not acknowledge that,
there would be no miracle. If everything is mere
accident, nothing is mere accident. If we say that the
converting of water into wine at the marriage of Cana is
nothing different from the way in which God gives us
wine in the grapes, then that is only confusing boundary
lines which God Himself has made. There is a kingdom
of nature; there are the laws of nature; at the same
time, it is God's kingdom, and it is the laws which He
has established, and which at any time, if it pleases Him
in His infinite wisdom and power. He may suspend in
order to remind us of His existence, and to teach us the
more important lessons of the spiritual world. But, on
the other hand, is it not natural — is it not reasonable to
suppose — that there will be a parallelism between those
two kingdoms — that the God of creation, the God of
providence, the God of redemption, and the God of final
glory will be the centre of all these various circles ?
When we are told that before the foundations of the world
were laid Christ was set up in the counsel of God — nay,
when the whole creation, the six days and the seventh
day, are full of illustrations of the gospel of the Lord
Jesus Christ, how can it be otherwise but that everywhere
we shall see the wonderful interference of God at certain
times ? Therefore in history, when we read history — when
we read of the wonderful victory that the Greeks achieved
over the prowess of the East — when we read of the
wonderful way in which the Roman Empire was estab-

THE FEAST OF J'ENTECOST. . 411

lished — this is what people call profaae history; but it is
sacred history ; it is the going forth of God according to
the redemption plan. It is with reference to Jesus that
all these things happen. It is according to the prophecy
Avhich God gave unto His chosen servants. It is to bring-
about the final fifth monarchy when Jesus shall rule upon
the earth, and likewise in the kingdom of nature. Every
Christian must rejoice over every progress of science, but
every Christian must feel fully established in his own
mind that it is the Lord who is God.

Now we see in the Old Testament that the ooinas forth
of God in redemption were always accompanied with
outward visible signs. Take for instance the Exodus.
What is the most important thing in the Exodus ? The
Paschal Lamb, and the fact that it was God who brouaht
out His people. But were there not great and mighty
signs which everj^body could see, whether he was a
believer or not ? Was not the river Nile turned into
blood ? Were not the powers of nature, as it were,
summoned in order to show forth unto the Egyptians the
power of God and the severity of God ? Was not the Red
Sea divided ? Were there not these miracles ? They are
not the most important, but they are as it vv'ere shadows
of that brightness of spiritual power which God shows
forth. Take again the passing of the children of Israel
through the wilderness. What is the most important
thing there? That God led them; that Christ was
among them ; that faith was exercised. But were there
not miracles? Was there not the manna from heaven?
Was there not the rock that gave forth the water ? Was
there not the healing through looking at the brazen
serpent? Again, take Elijah. When God revealed Him-
self unto Elijah, was there not the earthquake and the fire
before there came the still small voice ? Or when Jesus
was born. What is the most important thing there ?

412 THE FEAST OF PENTECOST.

y^hy, nothing can for a single moment be compared to
this — the Word was made flesh. That is the greatest
miracle. But was there not the star, a miraculous thing
that brought the wise men from the East in order that
they might worship the new-born King of the Jews ?
Take again when Jesus was upon the earth. Was there
not a voice which came down from ?ieaven and said, " This
is My beloved Son," and everybody heard that voice ? It
was the Bath-Kol, as the Hebrews called it — an audible
voice from heaven. The people said it thundered, and
some said an angel spake unto Him, but Jesus said, " It
was for your sakes that this voice came down." Again,
Avhen Jesus died upon the cross. Marvel of marvels !
God incarnate 1 After Jesus died there were great out-
ward manifestations of God's power. There came dense
darkness over the whole land. What was the meaning of
that ? When Jesus first appeared preaching the gospel,
the prophecy in Isaiah was fulfilled, " The people that sat
in darkness have seen a wonderful light." The Jews
rejected Jesus. When they put Him to death they had
rejected Him. Therefore God, the Father, sent a dense
darkness over all the earth in order to symbolize unto the
nation that in the rejection of Jesus Israel had rejected
the sun, the fountain of all light. Then the veil in the
temple was rent in twain. What was that to show ?
That the access into the holy of holies had been made
manifest. Then the earth quaked, and the rocks were
rent. What was that to show ? As Haggai says, " I shall
shake the earth before the final restoration comes." The
death of Jesus is that upon which the whole renovation of
the earth is based. Then the graves were opened, and
the dead men went forth and appeared unto their friends
in the holy city. What was the meaning of that, but
that Jesus had the key of Hades, and that the just men
of tlje old disj^ensation were made perfect through the

THE FEAST OF PENTECOST. 413

accomplishing of the sacrifice ? So we have in all the
dealings of God in redemption at important periods of the
history of God's people outward and visible signs. And
when Jesus will come again — who knows when it will be ? —
but when Jesus will come again there will be again signs
and wonders in heaven above and upon the earth below.
Men shall see it in the moon, and in the stars, and in the
rocks, and in all things around them when the day of the
Lord is approaching. Therefore we, who believe in God,
Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, one Lord, are not astonished
at all those wonderful outward signs and manifestations
which are recorded in the Word of God. And it is nothing
but the latent unbelief in the heart which does not wish
to acknowledge God the Creator of heaven and earth.
Although it wishes to acknowledge Him, it does not wish to
have Him near — does not wish to have Him come again
and manifest His power ; it is only this latent unbelief of
the heart which finds fault with those miracles which are
recorded to us in Holy Scripture.

Now let us look at the outward signs which accompanied
the descent of the Holy Ghost.

" Suddenly." Suddenly. They had been praying for
ten days, and yet it was suddenly. God often in answer
to our 251'ayers hesitates as it were, and leaves a clear
margin in order to show that He does it" in sovereignty,
whenever He chooses, in order to remind us that although
it is through our prayers, it is not on account of our
prayers, and that He is the first in all things.

" From above." Holy disciples had now quite a different
view of above from what they had before. The heavens
were now opened unto them. As Jesus said unto
Nathaniel — " Henceforth ye shall see the heavens opened."
Right through the sky, into the Holy of Holies, they were
able to look now with the eye of faith. Jesus was there
— the same Jesus whom they had known upon the earth.

414 THE FEAST OF PENTECOST.

Ob, how homely was heaven to them! "In My Father's
house I go to prepare a place for you," The very Jesus
Avho was above all blessings will now come down, and the
manifestations addressed themselves to the ear and to the
eye. There was a sound as of a mighty rushing wind.
Notice the caution of Scripture. It does not say it was
a wind, but " as of!' It says it was like fire ; that is to say,
the human words by which we can express that reality
which appeared — the most approximate expressions for it —
are to say that it was like the mighty rushing wind, or it
was like fire. The wind, you know, is the emblem of the
Spirit of God. First, it is mysterious and sovereign,
beyond our control. " The wind bloweth where it listeth."
Thou hearest the sound thereof, but thou knowest not
whence it cometh, and whither it goeth. Besides its being
mysterious, it is full of power. We cannot see the wind.
It may come very gently, as it were on the curls of a
little infant, and not disturb them, but it may come with
a mighty and irresistible energy. The wind is also an
emblem of the life-giving power of God. As in the thirty-
seventh chapter of Ezekiel the prophet beheld the many
bones that were very dry scattered upon the field, and the
wdnd arose and breathed upon them, even the Spirit of
the Lord, and they were quickened, and stood up, a mighty
army. Or, again, it may be animating, arousing, and
alarming. " Awake, O north wind, and come, thou south ;
blow upon my garden, that the spices thereof may flow
out. Let my beloved come into His garden, and eat His
pleasant fruits." The rushing mighty wind came down
from heaven, and made Himself felt in the whole of the
house.

The second emblem was fire. Ah, dear friend, through
the winter nights when you are looking into the fire, does
it not remind you of something ? God is the fire — emblem
of purity. In God is nothing but light and purity. God

THE FEAST OF PENTECOST. 415

is fire. "Our God is a consuming fire." The holiness
of God, which separates from itself everything that is
impure, which must consume everything that is ungodly —
wherever the love of God expresses itself as the fire of
wrath. Fire is the emblem of brightness and of heat,
bringing with it life and fervour. Fire also is the emblem
of that which cannot but communicate itself, even as the
light cannot remain in itself — must go forth, and bring
light and gladness unto others. Do you remember how
Moses when he was minding the sheep of his father.
Jethro, saw a great marvel in the wilderness — a marvel-
lous phenomenon — a bush burning and yet not consumed ?
And out of the fire of that bush, who spoke unto him ?
God spoke unto him — God the Son, the angel of the
covenant, that led Israel through the wilderness. Do you
remember the blessing that was given to Joseph — the
favour of Him that was in the bush ? Christ was in the
bush ; and the burning bush is not so much an emblem
of the Church as an emblem of the Son of God taking
upon Him our humanity, entering in His humanity into
the fire of God's holiness and yet not consumed, for through
the atonement of Jesus, the fire of God unto them is
now a fire of blessing — a fire of life and a fire of strength.
And thus was it that the Holy Ghost came in His outward
manifestations of the wind and of the fire.

Now, in conclusion, let me ask, have you received the
wonderful gift of the Holy Ghost — the wonderful gift of
the Holy Ghost? Jesus only is able to give it. But let
me say to any among you who do not know the wonderful
gift of the Holy Ghost, there is no preparation on your
part needed for receiving it. There is no delay. There
are no conditions laid down. Jesus is willing and able to
give the Holy Ghost unto every one that comes unto Him.
Oh, do you not remember that beautiful hour when Jesus
our Saviour sat thus on the well, and when the poor

41G THE FEAST OF PENTECOST.

woman of Samaria came there, ignorant, thoughtless^
frivolous, sinful, and Jesus said unto her, ''If thou knewest
the gift of God, and who it is that saith unto thee. Give
Me to drink, thou wouldest ask Him, and He would give
unto thee living water " ? So with every one, and any one
that knows the gift. "If thou knewest" — if you knew
there is such a person as Jesus, the Son of God, Saviour
of sinners, sender forth of the Holy Ghost, who alone can
give rest unto those who are burdened and heavy-laden ;
who alone can give pardon unto those that liave sinned
against God ; who alone can open the kingdom of heaven
to the guilty and tliose that have departed from the Lord.
"If thou knewest the gift of God," purchased with blood,
coming out of the sovereign free goodwill of the Father.
" If thou knewest the ©ift of God."

But knowing is not eiiough. All of you know it. You
must ask, you must wish it. You must not merely say,
" It is a desirable thing," but '* I wish it." You must not
merely say, " I wish it," but you must say, " I will it."
You must not merely say, " I will it," but you must say
" I will lose anything and everything, but I must get that."
You must not merely say, " I must get it," but you must
say, *' It is for Him to give it. I have no claim on it. I
will ask Him. I will ask Him." "If thou knewest the
gift of God, and who it is that saith unto thee, Give Me
to drink, thou wouldest have asked Him, and then, without
any delay or uncertainty, He would give unto thee that
living water."

And oh, what a blessed thing when we have come to
Jesus — when we have entered in by the door, and when
we have received from Him the living water ! You
remember the beginning of that wonderful poem of Dante,
when he describes the gate of hell and the inscription on
that gate. '* Give up all hope, ye who enter here." Ah,
there is another dooi, Jesus the crucitied and now exalted

THE FEAST OF PENTECOST. 417

Redeemer, leading unto heaven, and on that door is written,
" Give up nMfear, all ye that enter here ; " and the moment
we have entered in through that open door, and are inside
the door, and look back on the other side of the door, we
read this inscription, " None of those who have entered in
can ever be lost." Jesus will take care that if you have
once entered in by the door you will never be lost, for
" My sheep heai- My voice, and I know them, and they
follow Me, and I give unto them eternal life, and they
shall never perish, nor shall any one pluck them out of My
hands." Jesus seals us with His Holy Spirit unto the day
of Redemption. Oh, that we also may know the day of
Pentecost fully come ! Amen.

418

THE WISE VIRGINS}

T WISH to speak to you this morning on the wise
■^ virgins, and especially that which distinguishes the
wise virgins from the foolish virgins. All the ten appeared
as virgins. All the ten went forth to meet the bridegroom.
All the ten had lamps in their hands, and the lamps were
burning. All the ten slumbered and slept. What then
was the difference between the w^ise virgins and the
foolish virgins ? The difference is mentioned by our Lord
in these simple words — that the wise took oil in their
vessels with their lamps. This and this only constituted
the difference upon which such might}^ and awful issues
depend. The wise had not merely lamps burning, but
the wise, foreseeing the delay, took also in the vessels
which belonged to the lamps a supply of oil.

And this, dear friends, is the one point of which I
would speak to you to-day. You know that there are
more warnings addressed in the Word of God to professing
believers than even to the wicked and the worldly. There
are more passages in Scripture which are addressed to
those who appear to be believers and who think them-
selves believers, showing them the possibility that in the
sight of God they are unsaved, and that their final end
will be destruction.

Those who do not receive the Word of God at all are not

Preached in Belgrave Presbyterian Church, on Sunday Morninij,
July 1, 1883.

THE WISE VIRGINS. 419

treated of by our Lord in the parable of the sower ; but of
those who do receive the Word of God, He tells us that
three classes receive it in vain, and that only one class
receive it in reality. "Not every one that says unto
the Lord, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of
heaven." Not merely a few, but many who profess to be
believers in the Name of Jesus, who liave even the gift of
explaining the gospel, who are even successful in the work
of the gospel — many shall appear in that day to have had
only the form of godliness without the power. The opinion
of your fellow-believers does not decide the matter; for he
who was admitted to the marriage feast was considered by
every one to be fit until the Lord Himself came and asked,
" Friend, how camest thou hither, not having on a wedding
garment ? " Even among the twelve apostles one of them
was Judas the son of perdition. And of ten virgins, five
were wise, and five foolish ; not in the estimation of the
world, and very likely not in their own estimation, but in
the estimation of Him " who searcheth the hearts, and
trieth the reins."

Now when we think of this, the question arises in our
minds, whether we have any life within us, and any anxiety
about our future salvation. " Lord, is it I ? " If we re-
member that not all who are called are roused — that not
all who are roused are convinced — that not all who are
convinced are brought to believe in Jesus — that not all
who appear to believe in Jesus really do believe in Jesus
— oh, then the question must arise in our mind, " What
is that all-important, all-decisive, mysterious element
known only to God, which distinguishes the precious from
the vile, and the chosen from those who shall ultimately
be lost ? " No doubt this is the impression ^vhich the
parable of the ten virgins leaves upon every one with
whom God's Spirit is dealing at all ; but, if the impression
that was left was merelv one of fear and of terror, it would

420 THE WISE VIRGINS.

not be the impression which is intended by the Holy
Ghost; for fear contracts the heart, and when the heart
is contracted, then there is no communion with God. It
is by the heart being opened, expanded, melted — it is by
the heart trusting, by the heart going forth in confidence,
that the work of salvation in the soul is begun, continued,
and completed. That paralyzing fear has nothing to do
with the gospel, but belongs to the law. It was that fear
which took hold of the unprofitable servant, who said —
" Oh, salvation is no easy matter. Salvation is a very
solemn matter. There are a great many risks that are
possible here ; and therefore, knowing that the Lord is a
severe master, I will be very careful that I keep the talent
entrusted to me." And he became an unprofitable servant,
and was cast out into the outer darkness. Then what is
to be the effect of this parable on you — on me ? It is to
be this — that with our fear, with our misgiving, with our
consciousness of our own sinfulness, and of the deceitful-
ness of our hearts, we should be sincerely dealing with
God Himself: we should oo into the lidit of God: we
should deal with our heavenly Father, who is full of love,
and with that Saviour who died on the Cross, and who
is full of mercy and compassion, and be intensely interested
about our salvation in the presence of God and of Jesus
Christ; and knowing that this must be the secret life
from our apparent conversion even until we end and stand
before Jesus, — that all the time we are having our calling
and our election confirmed unto us, and that all the time
we are in communion with God, and that all the time
there is a secret betw^een the Shepherd and the sheep, so
that Jesus says, "I am known of Mine, and I know them,"
so that at the last what has gone on, point to point, day
to day, forms one continuous line until Jesus says — and
says before the whole world — " Come, ye blessed of My
Father, and inherit the kingdom prepared for you. '

THE WISE VIRGINS. 421

Two points in Christ's history stand out pre-eminentl3\
One is when He died upon the Cross, and shed His
precious BJood for remission of sins. That is the love of
Christ in dying, "the just for the unjust." " Greater love
hath no man than this." Greater love there is not, even
in the depths of Godhead. Greater sacrifice never will be
beheld by this universe. The highest point, the culmin-
ating point, of the love of God is on the Cross of Christ.
Throughout all eternity there will be nothing grander;
there will be nothing more beautiful and glorious to be
thouofht of than the death of Jesus on the Cross. On the
other side of eternity there is nothing more wonderful
than what you are going to commemorate this very
morning. Throughout all eternity angels and saints will
know no other subject of praise and of adoration but the
Blood of the Lamb that was slain.

But as this is the one point, so the other point is the
return of Jesus, when He will bring everlasting blessed-
ness and glory to all that wait for His appearing. When
we think and feel these two points, then we have the
whole influence of J3ivine life and power acting upon
ourselves — the love of the past, the glory of the future —
the death of Jesus on the Cross — the appearing of Jesus
for His Bride. This is the fire of gratitude, and of love,
and of devotedness, and this is the fire of anxiety to
please Him, and of hope and of perseverance. \Yithout
these two we cannot live properly, and therefore the
Lord's Supper is all-comprehensive. If the Lord's Supper
is that one institution by which Jesus Christ nourishes
and cherishes the Church, which is His Body, it is simply
because it brings before us these two points — Christ's
death on the Cross, and Christ's appearing to take us
unto Himself, Without the death of Christ on the Cross
there is no Christian life. Without the expectation of the
return of Jesus there is no healthful Christian life. Those

422 THE WISE VIRGINS.

two must go together. When the Church forgets the
Atonement, and when the Church forgets the second
advent of the Lord, it has reached its freezing-point. In
the Blood is the Hfe of the Church ; and in personal love
to Jesus, and waiting for His return, is the life of the
Church.

The ten virgins went forth to meet the Bridegroom.
Look at the wise virgins as we see them now in the
light of eternity, and as we see them now with the eyes
of Jesus. They had been separated from the world.
They had tasted that the Lord is gracious. They had
chosen Jesus to be the lover of their soul. They were
waiting now for His appearing, and for their entry into
the full enjoyment and fruition of the blessing which was
already theirs. Lamps they had in their hands, and the
lamps were burning ; but their desire was not merely to
appear to be Christians : their desire was to be Christians.
Their anxiety was not merely for the present moment.
Their desire was to have within them that which would
last and endure ; and therefore it was that, besides having
the oil burning in the lamp, they had provided themselves
also with oil to last them through the long delay. To
please the bridegroom — to be really in communion with
Him — to have that which, unknown and unobserved of the
world, was known and observed by Him, and which would
ever stand by them through all the various experiences
and vicissitudes of their course — that was their anxiety.

Now the brideojroom tarried, and while the brideo^room
tarried all the virgins fell asleep. Yet there was a differ-
ence between the sleep of the wise virgins and the sleep
of the foolish virgins. Oh, dear friends, our natural life
requires sleep, and sleep is no loss of time for our physical
life or for our mental life, because the rest is necessary in
order that the energies both of body and of mind should
be recruited, and that then we should be able to begin a

THE WISE VIRGINS. 42.*^

new course. Not until we have new bodies and perfected
souls shall we be able to serve the Lord day and night
without any intermission. In this outward life of ours
sleep is a blessing. Sleei^ is no loss of time. Sleep does
not weaken us. But in the spiritual life there ought not
to be a moment of sleep, for the night is past, and the sun
is shining, and Jesus is the light ; and He has given to us
in Himself a fullness out of which we are to take con-
tinually, and grace for grace. Then we are not to close
our eyes ; and not to give in to dreams and imaginations,
aud not to be separated from communion with Him. Tlie
sleep into which the wise virgins fell may have been a
culpable sleep. There is the enchanted ground, and even
Christians often are influenced by the fascinations of the
world — by the false notions of the world — by the low
standard that is in the Church. And there are times in
the life of most Christians when, owing either to the
enjoyments, or to the many occupations, or to the troubles
of this our present earthly life, they become dead to
Christ, lukewarm, confused in their minds, not hearincf
distinctly His voice ; and mingled visions, indistinct and
vague and erroneous, come into their thoughts, so that the
voice of God and the voice of the world are heard in
confusion. Ah, then the wonderful compassion of Jesus
watches over His poor and guilty one, and it may be
through severe chastening and bitter experience such a
one is brought back again to allegiance to his Saviour.
But it is possible that this sleep of the wise virgins was
like the sleep of Peter, John, and James, when Jesus,
scarcely rebuking them, said unto them, " Can you not
watch even one hour with Me ? " However that may
have been, it was a different sleep from the sleep of the
foolish virgins, for when the wise virgins were aroused
by the voice, "The bridegroom cometh," there was no
consternation in their mind. Gladly they rose. Collected

424 THE WISE VIRGINS.

were their thoughts. Fixed was their affection. Sure
was their faith. And they trimmed their lamps. And
as a smile irradiates the countenance of one who sees
a long-missed friend again, so the oil went through their
whole mind and soul, and with renewed strength and
renewed joy they went forth to meet the bridegroom. " I
sleep, but my heart waketh." So says the bride in the
Song of Solomon, and such may have been the sleep of
these five virgins. But when they were roused by the
voice, they were collected : they had oil in their lamps :
they were ready; and they went in, and they became
partakers of the joy of the bridegroom, for they had been
wise virgins who had taken oil in their vessels with their
lamps.

Now what was the oil, and what was the takinof of the
oil in the vessels ? In the parable of the Steward, what
the Lord wishes to show to us is faithfulness in service.
In the i^arable which is afterwards mentioned, of the
Judgment, when all the nations of the world appeared
before the throne of God, what the Lord wishes to im-
press upon our minds is mercifulness during this present
dispensation to all who are poor and needy, or lonely or
sick — faithfulness in service — mercifulness during this
dispensation of affliction and trial. But in the parable
of the Virgins our Lord does not dwell upon the outward
action, or upon the dispensing of those gifts which we
have received. He dwells upon the inward state and
condition. It is the inward condition of the five virgins
which is brought before us, and that is symbolized by the
fact that they had oil with their lamps. In one word,
they were spiritually-minded; and to be spiritually-
minded is the only way of being watchful. Not by
studying prophecy, — not by being like the Apostles, gazing
into heaven when they saw Jesus disappear in the sky,
but by having oil in the vessel with the lamps — by being

THE WISE VIRGINS. 425

spiritually-minded — by being in communion with the
Lord continually, and by treasuring up unto ourselves,
through continuous dealings with God, we attain to that
state of watchfulness, of collectedness, and of joy fulness,
that whenever the Lord Jesus comes we are ready to go
in with Him to the marriage.

The key to explain to us the taking of the oil in the
vessels, and having a reserve fund, is given to us in the
passage in the Second Epistle of Peter, which we have
read to-day. All things which pertain to life and godliness
are ^Aven to us in Christ Jesus. When a man is con-
verted — when a man is brought to the Lord Jesus Christ
— there is in that Jesus Christ everything that he needs : —
pardon for his sins — renewal for his heart — strength for
his energies — purpose for his will — knowledge for his
mind ; all patience, all watchfulness, all meekness, all
power of forgiving the trespasses of his neighbour. There
is no sin but he can overcome ; there is no temptation but
he can resist and conquer ; there is no grace but he can
take it out of the fullness of Christ ; there is no difficult
task but he can perform it, for all things which pertain
unto life and godliness are treasured up in Christ Jesus.
But this he must do. He must not be like the foolish
virgins, and say, '' Oh, I am converted : I am so happy.
Do you not see that my lamp is burning ? " — more bent
upon appearing to be a Christian than on being a
Christian — more bent on having peace and enjoyment
and consolation for his soul than really pleasing the Lord,
and having communion with Him. Then begins his real
work. Why, up to this you have not been able to do
anything but mischief. Now begins the real work.
Seeing that He has given unto us all things which pertain
to life and godliness, bring out of these one thing after
the other. To faith, add virtue ; to virtue, add knowledge ;
and to knowledge, add temperance; and to temperance,

E E

426 THE WISE VIRGINS.

add brotherly love; and to brotherly love, add charity.
Bring out what is given to you in Christ first. Or again,
as the Apostle Paul writes to the Philippians, " Because I
love you. I have you in my heart ; but I am confident of
this very thing, that he who hatli begun a good work will
perform it unto the day of Christ " — not with paralyzing
fear which the unprofitable servant had, but the heart
expanded in truthfulness to Jesus, who died for us, and
who surely loves us much more now that He has brought
us unto Himself. And he says, " I am anxious that you
should increase more and more in all knowledge ; that you
should approve the things that are excellent ; and that you
should be found to be sincere and without blame in the
day of Christ, being filled with the fruits of righteousness,
which are not of your exertion, but by Christ Jesus, to the
glory of God." This having the reserve fund — the oil in
the lamp — is, that, according as the Apostle Peter teaches
us, and according as the Apostle Paul teaches us, we are
trusting in Jesus, abiding in Jesus, going daily to Jesus,
leaning on Jesus, and treasuring up to ourselves continually
more light, more love, more faith, more patience, more
self-denial, more forgivingness, more meekness, more self-
control, more everything that is like the Lord Jesus
Christ. They took oil with them in their vessels with the
lamp. Not for the world to see or admire. It was a
secret between them and the Lord. Oh, if you love any
one very much, you do like to speak to him without any
third person being present. It is a secret between the
Lord Jesus Christ and the soul. Enoch walked with God.
Oh, how simple is this expression, yet how delightful, how
perfectly self-illuminating ! Enoch walked with God ; and
if we walk with God, every day must be progress : every
day must be a renewal : every day must be replenishing.
They took oil with them in the vessels with the lamps.
'' Buy for yourselves." That is what the wise virgins

THE WISE VIRGINS. 427

said to the foolish. " Buy for yourselves." No books, no
ministers, no meetings, no medium here between you and
the Lord. It is a personal transaction. It is a daily
transaction. It is a dealing with the Lord. Buy for
yourselves ; for what you need you only can know. What
you wish to obtain from the Lord cannot be understood
perfectly by any other person, and the obtaining of it is a
personal thing between you and the Lord. Oh what an
expression that is ! " Buy." It is said, " Ho, every one
that thirsteth, come ye, and he that hath no money, buy :
buy wine and milk without money and without price."
Ay, it is true that it is of grace, according as He hath
given unto us all things which pertain unto life and godli-
ness. As free as the precious blood of Jesus, so free is
every gift, every virtue, every feature of sanctification,
which God in Jesus bestows upon us. Only trust Him as
freely for replenishing you with the oil as 3^ou trust Him
for having given you the first knowledge of Himself as a
Saviour.

But there is something else implied in the buying. It
does not merely mean that it is for nothing. It means
also the very opposite — that you must pay everything that
you have in order to get it; for when the merchant had
sought goodly pearls, and discovered the pearl of great
price, he sold all that he had in order to get into possession
of that one. " Buy for yourselves." That was the search-
ing message to the foolish virgins. They had never given
themselves, and everything that they were and had, in
order to obtain that one thing that was necessary.

But, still farther, if you ask, " Why is all this compared
with oil ? " the answer occurs to you, that it is not merely
as a beautiful illustration — a most marvellous illustration.
If you look upon that parable simply as a skilful parable,
you must be astonished at it — how in a story which was
continually occurring, and with which all the people there

428 THE WISE VIRGINS.

were perfectly familiar, our Lord Jesus Christ has illustrated
the most various and important truths in the experience
of spiritual life. But the oil, we know, means the Spirit
of God. It means that Holy Ghost who from the Father
and the Son descends into the hearts of God's jDeople,
who converts, who sanctifies, who enlightens, who comforts,
who imparts to us all the treasures of the Divine Grace.
Bat it does not mean the Holy Ghost Himself merely,
but that which is born of the Holy Ghost. That which is
of the flesh is flesh. That which is born of the Spirit is
spirit. The oil in the vessels along with the lamps means
the spiritual mind of the Christian. As I said before —
and this is the point of the whole parable — to be spiritually-
minded is to be watchful : to be in the Spirit is to keep
up the communion with the Lord Jesus Christ : to be in
the Spirit is the test whether we have been converted, for
" If any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of
His."

But now there remains the most important point still to
be noticed. You can have no doubt what Jesus intends
of you. You can have no doubt that Jesus does not wish
any of His disciples to be in a state of consternation when
He comes. You can have no doubt that Jesus wants you
to receive Him with a joyful face — that He wants you to
be ready for Him, to say, " Lo, this is our God : we have
waited for Him with gladness, and we welcome Him,
knowing that He loves us, and that He will give to us now
the full fruition of what His death on the Cross has produced
for us." We are to be ready : we are to be prepared ; we
are to be rejoicing. And whence is it we are to derive
this readiness? In the parable of the Wise Virgins it is
hinted to us. In the institution of the Lord's Supper it is
put before us clearly, so that we can perceive it even with
our outward senses. There is no other preparation for
the second advent but the eating that Body which is fcod

THE WISE VIRGINS. 429

and bread indeed, and drinking that Blood which is drink
indeed. The oil, the Holy Ghost, the spiritual mind,
comes only out of one channel. You know that the Holy
Ghost could not be given, until Jesus had died upon the
Cross and was glorified. There is no oil except it comes
out of the riven side of Jesus. There is no Spirit but as it
comes with the Blood of Christ. It is by our continually
remembering the salvation of Christ on the Cross — it is by
our continually holding fast the beginning of our confidence
— it is by our continually sitting spiritually at the Lord's
Supper, and dwelling upon the death of Jesus, and the love
which Jesus had when He died for us — it is only in this
way that the Spirit is given unto us, and that we are kept
watchful and ready to receive our Lord.

Exclude then from your mind everything that is legal
— all fear which is of bondage — all self-righteousness or
self-sanctification. " By Christ ye have been saved through
faith, and that not of yourselves. It is the gift of God."
The forgiveness of sin is your starting-point, and not the
goal towards which you strive. You have already obtained
through faith the love of God, the favour of God, and the
everlasting salvation of God. Eat this; drink this; and
you have filled your vessels with oil; and thus looking
back to the Cross of Jesus is the only preparation and the
only strength in which we can look forward to the coming
of Jesus. Amen.

430

APPENDIX A.

DR. Keith's illness — the archduchess.

The following are extracts from articles written by Dr.
Keith, and published in the Sunday at Home in 1867, in
which he describes his illness at Pesth, and wonderful re-
covery, and the kindness of the Archduchess ; and the way by
which this illness led, in God's providence, to the establish-
ment of the mission to the Jews in Pesth. Speaking of the
deputation, or Commission of Inquiry, from the Church of
►Scotland (appointed to visit different countries, with a view
to the planting of Jewish missions), composed of himself.
Professor Black of Aberdeen, McCheyne, and Andrew Bonar,
he says : — It is a story of thrilling interest, manifesting the
guidance and care of God. The deputation had a letter from
the Foreign Office (Lord Palmerston) to the British am-
bassadors and consuls, for our use, wherever we might go.
At Pesth there was no consul. We had an accumulation of
introductions for other cities, but not one for it — nor did we
know one single individual within it. Yet w^e would have
been faithless to our charge if we had passed it by, or tarried
only for a night. According to the original plan of our route,
w^e had resolved not to come within hundreds of miles of it,
but there we were ; and long ere w^e reached it w^e had
resolved to stop at Pesth, at least for three days, till the next
steamer should arrive, thinking that that time might suffice
for it. But brief as it was, it sufficed to convince us that of
all the cities we had visited, none was to be compared to it,
as the promising site of a Jewish mission. Our inquiries were
then incomplete ; we could not go, till w^e could learn still more;
and though we had paid for our passage by the next steamer,
we let it pass without entering it. A Babbi (a nationalist),
as if provoking us to persevere, said, " Send us out a mis-
sionary, and we will reason with him." We had no such
challenge in any other city. We had ascertained that there
were many such Jews to be reasoned with there, and were

DU. KETTU'S ILLNESS. 431

informed by one of the professors that there were thirty-
Jewish youths at the University. As to the desirability of
a mission there we were soon fully satisfied ; but as to its
possibility we saw no way. We knew well that the Austrian
Government, then supreme in Hungary, would be dead
against it. The dread object in our view was the grand
palace of the Prince Palatine, an Austrian archduke, the
uncle of the Emperor. The first sight of it seemed to defy
us, and to destroy all hope, if, hoping against hope, we had
cherished any. However beautiful, it had, when we thought
of our object, no beauty in our eyes ; and it was the very last
place to which we should have looked for help.

Help was needed to give us any hope, and even, it may be
said, to keep one of us from the grave. Two quarantines on
the banks of the Danube, and ascending slowly up that river
for many hundreds of miles, at the most pestilential season of
the year, had smitten us both with intermittent or, as it is
called, the Danube fever. Enfeebled thus, we had at first to
grope our way as strangers in a strange city, and to gather
information from public men, whose names we had to ascer-
tain — Rabbis, Professors, Protestant clergymen, ttc. — as quietly
and unostentatiously as we could. Steam navigation had made
travellers les:s objects of observation. Going thus from house
to house to complete our inquiries, and to find, if we could,
some friend to our cause, I was suddenly seized in passing
along the street with faintness and sickness, and had to retreat
into a house, and I lay there for some time before I was able
to return to the hotel.

On reaching the hotel I was speedily prostrated by an
attack which had some of the symptoms of cholera ; while my
beloved friend of many years — now the late Dr. Black,— while
I live to write it, — saw me sinking more and more, till he
thought I was about to die, was walking up and down
wringing his hands, bemoaning himself and weeping like a
child ; and I, who thought myself dying, but believing in
Jesus, felt my true self, though not the shell, to be all alive,
was trying to comfort him, so long as I could speak. I fainted
away, became insensible, my pulse stopped as if '* all was
over," as mortals creatures speak, and this fleeting life had
passed away. A scene of yesterday is not more fresh in my

432 DR. KEITH'S ILLNESS.

mind than this, as I seemed to take the last look on earth of
my Christian friend, and I seem to see him still. He was the
strength of our mission — a man of vast erudition, and a pro-
found theologian. He spoke nineteen languages, and wrote
twelve. On seeing me, as he thought, dying or dead, his
affectionate heart was touched to the quick, and his fever
returned with increased violence. I saw him not again for
six weeks, though there was only a thin wall between our
rooms ; when he came to see me — the shadow of what he was—
I have often said that we were like two dead dogs. But it
is now time to say to the reader : Come and see what the
Lord can do, who said to His disciples, " The very hairs of
your head are all numbered."

At the time I became insensible, the master of the hotel,
observing a foreign gentleman passing along the street, ran
to him and asked, " Are you an Englishman?" He said that
he was. He then besought him to enter, and see two English
travellers, one of whom was dying, and the other was taken
very ill, and he did not know what to do. The stranger (a
Mr. Wakefield) said that he could do nothing ; for he and
his family were to start the next morning at five o'clock for
Transylvania. Still pressed, he came. On seeing me, though
1 saw him not, he said, " Two English ladies have arrived,
and I will let them know."

They were Mrs. and Miss Pardoe. The latter had gone to
Constantinople to write the City of the Sultan, and she had
now come to Pesth to write a book on Hungary. She had
seen Prince Esterhazy, who had put a coach at her command
to visit his palaces — to paint them to the English public.
More than that, he introduced her to the Archduke, who was
then presiding over the Hungarian Diet at Presburg. From
liim she brought a note to the Archduchess, whom she had
already seen. No sooner did Miss Pardoe hear the doleful
tidings from Mr. Wakefield, than she hasted to the bedside
of the speechless stranger, and learned the name by looking
for it on my portmanteau. Being herself a stranger in
Pesth, she returned at once to the Archduchess, who sent
immediate orders that everything possible should be done for
my recovery.

A sparrow cannot fall unto the ground without the Father.

THE ARCHDUCHESS. 433

Apparently I was about to fall unto the ground, and speedily
to be laid in the grave. According to the law and practice
there, so soon as a foreigner dies, the body is laid twenty-four
hours in a church, and then buried. Two men, as I was
afterwards told, were there awaiting at my bedside to carry
me away. A literary gentleman of position and influence,
whom we had previously seen, calling at the time, on seeing
me said, "Nothing can be done but order the coflBn." But
other and imperial orders were obeyed, and everything possible
was done. When vital heat was slowly restored to my cold
body, and signs of recovery appeared, the physician cried in
my ear, "We all thought you were dead." "Not dead," was
my reply. These were the only words I uttered, and day
after day I continued in a state of unconsciousness, at least
to all outward things. Awakening as if from a sleep, seeing a
lady at my bed-side — Mrs. Christie with her husband. Captain
Christie, then on their way to the East — I asked, " What
day is this ? " " Not possible," I said, when I was told that
it was Sabbath, having no knowledge or recollection beyond
the tenth day previously. She afterwards informed me, in
Edinburgh, on referring to this, that the first words I spoke
w^ere, " Is that clock striking yet ? " Blisters had been put
over my body, and hot bottles around it, but I never felt
them. When restored to sensibility, feeling some splashes
on my breast, on asking what they were I was told that
there burning wax had been dropped. And again, " These
crusts ? " " There you were punctured, to try if there was any
sensation." But there was none, and the only sign of life
was that of my breath on a mirror, put close to my mouth,
so faint that of it there were doubts . . . The physician who
attended me, one of the professors, said, " I never knew,
heard, or read of any one but yourself who touched the gates
of death without passing through them."

It was a new thing, so far as known, for any Church, as
such, to send forth missionaries, or establish missions, specially
and expressly for the conversion of the Jews. No little interest
had thus been excited among the friends of Israel, when the
deputation went forth from Scotland. Many bestirred them-
selves to secure letters of introduction for our use ; and we
were thus furnished wuth a large number from many indi-

434 DR. KEITH'S ILLNESS.

viduals personally unknown. Among these, as she afterwards
informed us, was one from Miss Pardoe, to a Pasha, or some
dignitary in Cairo. She thus knew at once that we were
there on our return from Palestine, and could tell who we
were, and the purpose of our journey. So soon as she took
the tidings to the Archduchess, and informed her how and
where I lay, she said that " the Archduke had given her a
book of his" (Dr. Keith's), "with views in Palestine" (refer-
ring to the illustrated edition of the Evidence of Fropliecy). A
motive power compared to which the mere doings of men were
a nothing, sprang up that moment in her mind, which was
never afterwards obliterated or diminished ; which no human
being had any part in exciting or anything to do with, which
influenced, as it explained, her future actions and her un-
flinching devotedness ; but which she did not tell to a
stranger. As repeatedly thereafter told by herself to different
Christian friends, it had thus its origin.

During the previous fortnight, night after night, without
the exception of one, she aw^oke suddenly in the middle of the
night, at the same hour, with a strong and irrepressible con-
viction that something w^as to happen to her. It uniformly
continued for a wakeful and most anxious hour, and when it
passed away she had her undisturbed and usual rest. Re-
curring thus regularly and uniformly, the impression was
more and more deepened in her mind ; and she thought in
vain what it could be, except it was the death of her mother,
as she thought that would affect her most. Thus, day after
day, on the arrival of the post she looked for tidings of her
mother's death. This continued till the day Miss Pardoe
told her that I was lying in a seemingly dying state at Pesth.
Instantly, as she expressed it, she thought within herself,
" This is what was to happen to me." That night, and
uniformly after, her sleep was as unbroken as before, without
any real disturbing thought. Seven years thereafter, when
the Duchess of Gordon and I went to meet her at her mother's
in the palace of Kirkheim in Wurtemburg, referring to it she
said that she never had any such feeling in her life, either
before or after, but only then.

In that feeling, involved as it was with many coiEcidences,
which it was not man that directed and over-ruled, lay the

THE AROHDUCIIKSS. 435

key whereby a door was to be opened for the Jewish mission
at Pesth, though no one knew it, or thought of it then ....

As soon as it was deemed that my returning strength wouhl
permit, the Archduchess came for the first time to see me.
So far as known she had never previously entered an hotel in
Pesth. It took the inmates by surprise. The cry was raised at
her coming — "The Princess Palatine I " There was a hubbub
in the house, a running to and fro — all bustle and preparation.

Dr. Keith proceeds to give an account of the frequent visits
of the Archduchess — of her unfolding to him all her mind —
of her sorrow for the loss of her beloved son, the Prince
Alexander, of great firmness and possessed of true Christian
faith, at the age of seventeen, two years before — though she
was perfectly submissive — but especially of the burden of her
sins, for which she thought special judgments had overtaken
her. Her mind was full, and she poured out her sorrows.
"When she had spoken at great length, Dr. Keith's first words
indicating the purport of her statement were, " No, madam,
if there be faith in Christ, afllictions, however great, are
not evidence of the wrath of God, but tokens of His love,
who chasteneth whom He loveth, and scourgeth every son
whom He receiveth." The Archduchess continued to visit
him during his illness every alternate day, and there was
much conversation as to a possible mission to the Jews.

Dr. Keith tried to leave Pesth with Dr. Black (who had to
return to his University duties), two months after he had been
seized with illness ; but being again attacked w^th fever and
ague, he had to remain some months longer — six months in all.
It was not till after this attempt to leave that he saw Mr.
Saphir and others, and acquired the knowledge which made
him urge the establishment of a mission to the Jews in Pesth.
He had inquired of a literary Polish gentleman if he knew
any intelligent Jew in Pesth on whose testimony he could
thoroughly rely. ''There is no man like Mr. Saphir," he said.
With him and others he had many conversations. From his
great candour, he had good hopes that Mr. Saphir would
become a convert. But it was some years later before the
great change took place. " His was a long and hard struggle,"
says Dr. Keith, " before he was convinced that the Jews
ci^ucified the Messiah." Some idea may be formed of the

43C) DR. KEITH'S ILLNESS.

nature of the conflict in his mind from what he said when it
was finished. After a sleepless night, he said to his wife,
"I am convinced that Jesus is the Christ, and though I see
nothing but starvation staring us in the face, I must go and
confess it."

As to the Archduchess, Dr. Keith continues : — " Literally
she ministered to me with lier own hand. Often when I was
athirst, or fatigued in the course of conversation, putting one
of her hands under my head, she gently raised it from the
pillow, and with the other gave me to drink. She brought
the same cup with which she had ministered to her dying
son." Dr. Keith had relapses at different times, and but for
her constant attention would never have recovered. Thus in
the very centre of power was found the protection and
zeal for the mission, which Dr. Keith pressed forward
afterwards in committee, amidst much opposition, convinced
that God Himself had indicated to them Pesth as a grand
centre for Jev.-ish missions.

Of the Archduchess he says, in winding up his narrative : —
"To me she was Christian kindness itself, and none the less
because of my using ' all plainness of speech.' So observant
and considerate was she, that noticing that my bed was so
short that I could not stretch myself on it " (Dr. Keith was
very tall), " she sent without delay a fine long bed — that, as
she afterwards told me, of the Archduke, being the longest in
the palace — on which I lay till my departure. When again
in a high fever, and my life in danger, I one day wondered
at the unusual and perfect stillness, and, on asking the cause,
was told that the street was covered with straw near the
hotel, and a soldier (Austrian soldiers too) was stationed at
each end of the street to prevent any thoroughfare, and to
keep any carriage that stopped in it at a walking pace. Her
attention to all my wants or comforts was unremitting and
unwearied ; and long before I left, my chief meal was sent
daily in hot dishes from the palace, as the physician prescribed
what was best for my use. . . ."

He long lay very ill, and but for the arrival of one of his
sons, then a student of medicine in Edinburgh, who adopted
quietly more decisive and effective treatment, and who re-
mained with him till he left, would probably not have recovered,

437

APPENDIX B.

DR. Duncan's wonderful influence in pesth.

There was nothing more remarkable in the Pesth mission
than the wonderful influence at once obtained by the Rev.
Dr. Duncan, who was a man of singular absence of mind, but
of much philosophical and theological, and above all spiritual,
power. He at once commanded a respect, from his learning
and spirituality combined, which from the very first raised
the mission to a position of influence, among both Jews and
Gentiles, Protestants and Roman Catholics, and the effect of
which was felt for many years after he had gone. He was
respected in his own country, but never exercised such power
as in his brief missionary life at Pesth. We have there-
fore thought it advisable to give in an appendix a fuller
account of his influence than we could well have done in the
Life. We derive our information from the Recollections of
ike Rev. J. Duncan, LL.D., by Dr. Moody Stuart, and from
the well-known Life, written by the Rev. Principal Brown, D.D.

" Before leaving Scotland he had been married to a Mrs.
Torrance, who entered with Christian enthusiasm and energy
and wisdom into all his missionary work. Their house in
Pesth was thrown open to the Jews ; they saw all their habits
and ways, and had Christianity presented before them without
being forced upon them. His very peculiarities seemed to
suit them, and to attract rather than to offend ; and his truly
Christian tact was so great that his opponents spoke of him
as ' a very cunning missionary.'

" On their arrival in Pesth they found a number of English
engaged in the erection of a chain-bridge, and their presence
gave the missionaries a legal opportunity of preaching the
gospel, of which they gladly availed themselves. Dr. Duncan
was requested to marry two British subjects, and consented.
A few days after he had performed the ceremony, the Arch-
duke Palatine of Hungary sent for him, and after a kind
reception told him that it was his duty to inform him that

438 DR. DUNCAN'S WONDERFUL

tlie act was illegal, and must not be repeated. He answered,
' I am an ordained minister of the Established Church of
Scotland, and I hold myself entitled under Christ to administer
the ceremony of marriage between British subjects.' The
Archduke replied, ' I don't question your ministerial orders,
but marriage in this country is civil as well as religious, and
must be administered by a clergyman recognized by law\
But all that I ask you to do is, in future, to act on such
occasions as the vicar of a legally recognized pastor.' Pro-
ceeding on his uniform breadth of view, and acting with his
usual prudence, Dr. Duncan at once consented ; and in
baptism and every other ordinance both he and the other
missionaries to the Jews always acted as vicars to Pastor
Toriik, the honoured superintendent of the Reformed Church,
from whom they invariably received the greatest kindness."

Dr. Duncan's conscience was more alive than most men's
to the evil of any conformity with or countenance to the errors
of Papacy, and he would not be present, even in the way of
curiosity, at the idolatrous service of the Mass. When his
friends went to witness the pomp of that worship in Bome on
a high occasion, he left them at the door of the church. But
he would attend the preaching without scruple ; he described
with great vivacity the sermons which he heard in Italy ; and
in the Roman Catholic creed he always owned the " wheat "
with which the " arsenic " was mingled. Of his remarkable
intercourse in Pesth with the Hebrew and Roman Catholic
doctors Mr. Allan gives a graphic account. " For a while in
Pesth it was a precious time. The great subjects of the gospel
were presented and defended as new. The venerated beliefs
and positions of Judaism presented themselves in numbers of
living, intelligent men ; and the discussion of these gave exer-
cise to his beloved acquirements of Hebrew and Latin. The
latter he spoke with great purity, precision, and readiness ;
the effort that he required to make to find and frame his
words gave compactness to his discourse ; when he had to
quote the Scriptures it behoved to be in the original, as such
is the practice of the Jews, and only so is it of authority.
Such engagement kept mind, body, and spirits healthy ; prayer,
too, active, and the fruit was seen.

" It was at this time that, besides daily converse with learned

INFLUENCE IN PESTH. 439

Jews and Roman Catholics, numbers of both attended his
services. Among the latter was a company of four friends,
three of them 2)riests, and one a young lawyer. The elder of
the priests had the honorary office of chaplain to the King
of Sardinia ; another of them appeared prominently in the
Council at Kome (1870), Sr. Lodovicus Haynald, Bishop of some
place in Croatia, I think. Among other duties they conducted
a newspaper in Magyar, and at that time the controversy was
very free between them and Protestant Rationalists. Of
course the Catholics were too wise — I may say too faithful —
to take their stand upon any accretions ; they stuck to the
f undamendal verities. ' I,' said the doctor, openly and re-
peatedly, 'side with the Catholics.' He could not then read
Magyar, but he used to see both papers on the controversy,
and count the passages of ►^jcripture quoted by each. ' I
find,' said he, 'that the Catholics quote Scripture six times
for the Protestants' once.' Our friends attended our Sabbath
services most regularly ; the doctor preached a series of dis-
courses on the Lord's Prayer ; they (the Catholics) were very
anxious to have these discourses to publish in their paper;
but you know how impossible that was in the absence of a
shorthand writer. One thing was very marked in his public
and private intercourses with these gentlemen and others of
the same Church ; he always guardedly spoke of the Church
as the ' Western Church' I understood it to be a compromise
between Catholic and Roman. I remember the great surprise
expressed by my young friend the priest in these words, * But
your doctor is orthodox.'

''These things recall very pleasant memories. Our four
R. C. friends wished to learn English (as England at that
time was the model set up by the Hungarians), and I was
their teacher. It opened for me much pleasant intercourse.
Would that it had been more profitable ! I spent some days
with Haynald at Gran, where he was Professor of Theology,^
and had the honour of being introduced to the Prince Primate.
I am sure my then master. Dr. Duncan, would not have
objected to any respect shown the venerable man, or any

^ At'tenvards Cardinal Archbishop Haynald, Kalocsa, Hungary. He
was at the Papal Council in Rome in 1870, and opposed the decree of
infallibiUty.

440 DR. DUNCAN'S WONDERFUL

received from him. Dr. Duncan said he would preach in
the Pope's pulpit if he asked him, and I feel sure he would
have done it, with surpassing delicacy."

It was towards the close of this happy time that we used to
have the communion in the upper room, joined with others by
a venerable Countess Brunswick, a devout Catholic clinging to
the hope of reformation in her venerable Church. Schauffler
and family visited us about the same time on their way from
Vienna, where he had been printing his Bible. Old Saphir
had for some time been often with us in public and private ;
leading (or being led, you could hardly tell which) by the
hand his Benjamin — Adolph. He was present as a witness
on the occasion of our communion to which I refer. I can
never forget that sight. He was sitting on a chair. The
boy, standing, was between his knees, the young head reaching
nearly to the aged face, the face nearly resting on the youth-
ful head. We had ended the Supper. Dr. Duncan gave out
the sixty-fourth paraphrase, ' To Him that loved the souls of
men.' To our surprise the voice of the old Hebrew rose
above our voices, and when we looked to him the tears were
falling plentifully on the head of Adolph. These are days to
be remembered."

" The dust of the earth on the throne of the Majesty on high
was the great stumbling-block to those Israelites ; yet some of
them were learning to call Jesus, Lord."

"The venerable Saphir, one of the most respected of the
Jews in Pesth, and his whole family with him, were among the
first-fruits of the mission. The boy, on whose head his old
father's tears fell so fast, has long been well known as one of
the most devoted, honoured, and successful of the Presbyterian
ministers in England. Two Hebrew students, afterwards the
Pev. Mr. Edershcim of Torquay, and the Pev. Mr. Tomory of
Constantinople, were among the earliest converts. Of his
daily intercourse with them and others in the freshness of their
first love, Dr. Duncan spoke afterwards with interest and
enthusiasm. In reading the Xew Testament with them they
found it speak so exactly to their own circumstances, their
joys, their hopes, their difficulties, their trials, that he said to
me, ' They used to read day after day the Epistles of Paul, as
if they had been letters that had come by that morning'y

INFLUENCE IN PEST II 441

post.' In this city more than a hundred Hebrew converts
have since been baptized (in 1873) in the name of Him whom
the nation abhors."

The E,ev. Alexander Tomory, long missionary to the Jews
in Constantinople, himself one of the first-fruits of the mission
to Pesth, gave also in Dr. Moody Stuart's volume an interesting
account of Dr. Duncan's work. *' While the Church at home
made preparation for her work among the children of Israel,
and fixed on Pesth as her first central mission, the Lord
prepared some souls in that dark land to be the first recipients
of those bounties, the first-fruits of the great gathering, the
trophies of His redeeming love. If my time permitted, I
would gladly prepare a full statement as a tribute of filial
affection to him who, in the providence of God, was to me as
a father, at whose feet I gladly sat, and whose teaching and
godly example were so much blessed to me.

" Six hours distant from Pesth sighed a lonely soul for the
Word of Life. In vain did I speak to Protestant theological
professors and Roman Catholic bishops ; they had nothing to
say to lead an erring sheep back to the Great Shepherd ] but
a high prelate in Vienna on hearing my story said, * Why did
you come here ? In Pesth there are English missionaries.' So
these functionaries then had notice of Dr. Duncan's presence
in the capital of Hungary, and three days later I was intro-
duced to the dear man. In a most syllogistic way, and in
fluent Latin, he brought out the truth of the gospel, and
urged me to accept Christ as my Saviour. I well remember
the time and the locality ; the very words still linger within me
with a thrilling echo. Bat quite in keeping with the character
of the doctor, with the ruling passion, in the same breath he
began to teach me English. While the tears were yet in my
eyes and his, he began to conjugate an English verb, and made
me repeat it. After that I saw him almost daily till he left
for Italy. This was in the year 1842. He left, but the blessing
remained behind. It was a time of love, a time of the right
hand of the Most High ; it was a pentecostal time. I have
seen for months a large hall filled with Jews twice a week,
drinking in the words as they came from Messrs. Smith and
Wingate. It was a time of earnest prayer, and souls were
born as in a day. Two or three met together, and spent

F F

442 DR. DUNCAN'S WONDERFUL

whole nights in prayer ; they prayed for the missionaries, for
the work, for individual souls, and for Israel in general, and
surprising answers were granted.

" When he returned to Pesth in June 1843, I was already
baptized, and a number besides. He was surrounded by a
flock of new-born souls, and felt quite overwhelmed. I well
remember his English sermon preached on the first Sabbath
after his return, on 3 John 3, ' I rejoiced greatly, when the
brethren came and testified of the truth that is in thee, even
as thou walkest in the truth.' He was deeply moved, and
scarcely able to proceed. The words of Csesar might have been
applied to him in a spiritual sense, * Veni, vidi, vici.' Whole
days were occupied in receiving visitors, and his metaphysical
and conversational powers were brought into full play. I
heard him talking away for hours together on the most
abstruse questions. We hung on his lips, and drank in every
word. A Popish priest, professor in the Theological Seminary,
called one afternoon, and the discussion was a most animated
one. The doctor brought out glorious truths in the most
classic Latin, and the Professor seemed to enjoy it immensely,
although opposing the propositions advanced. His learning
attracted many people — Rabbis, teachers, and students were
daily visitors ; there was a constant coming and going, and
the regular instruction was left almost entirely to Messrs.
Smith and Wingate. His influence in the place was immense,
and he certainly used it for good.

" He greatly desired the revival of the Hungarian Church ;
various plans and means were proposed. A great influence
was produced on both the Lutheran and Reformed Churches
in Pesth and Hungary generally. Many were delivered from
rationalism. Among others Bauhofer, chaplain to the Arch-
duchess, who confessed before he died that he owed his
conversion to the missionaries."

The following description of Duncan is given by the Rev.
Dr. Smith in Principal Brown's Life of Duncan : — " He seemed
to be a child and a giant in one, both characters curiously
intermingled, making intercourse with him peculiarly delight-
ful. No man ever inspired less awe, nor called forth deeper
reverence. What added greatly to the weight of his words
was, that all his views on the great questions of philosophy,

INFLUENCE IN PESTIL 443

theology, and philology were thoroughly matured. You very
rarely discovered an idea in the process of formation. Every
thought came forth from the birth in full maturity. But
though from the circumstances his opinions were not only
clear, but strong and decided, he was singularly free from
dogmatism. The severe mental conflict by which the most of
them had been reached, made him tolerant towards the cruder
and less perfectly formed views of others. All this I learned
more fully afterwards, but I saw enough at my first interview
to convince me that the Church had made a wise arrangement
in giving him the superintendence of the younger missionaries,
and I reckoned myself fortunate in the prospect of possessing
such a guide in my preparation for future labour."

A fuller account is given by him of the Archduchess'
earlier history : —

" The Archduchess Maria Dorothea was by birth a princess
of the house of WUrtemburg, and a Protestant. When she
consented (while spiritually unawakened) to marry the Roman
Catholic Archduke Palatine, Joseph, the Emperor's uncle, and
Viceroy of Hungary, it w^as with the express security that she
should enjoy full religious liberty for herself ; and even after
she became so decided, she had the sincere attachment of her
husband. Still, she felt herself alone in her adopted country,
and though feeling the deepest interest in its religious welfare,
she was able to do next to nothing for it, owing to the jealous
watchfulness of the Romish authorities, then all-powerful in
Austria. But the deep waters of afiliction through which she
had to pass were greatly blessed to her. Her eldest boy — a
youth of great promise, and already styled ' the hope of Hun-
gary,' of high talents, good address, and handsome person, and,
what his mother valued most of all, already her companion in
decision of Christian principle — had, to her unspeakable grief,
been taken from her at the early age of seventeen. Driven to
her Bible and her knees, she there found the needed relief.
The palace in which she resided stands on an eminence, looking
down on the Danube rolling beneath, with the city of Pesth
on its opposite bank ; and her private apartment lay towards
the front of the building. ' There in the deep embrasure ' she
poured forth her prayers to God, for a revival of spiritual life
in Hungary."

444

APPENDIX C.

(The following obituary notice is abridged from the Humorist of
September 7, 1858, of which paper Mr. M. G. Saphir had been
l^roprietor, editor, and publisher.)

DR. SAPHIR's uncle, MORITZ G. SAPHIR, POET AND SATIRIST.

MoRiTZ Gottlieb Saphir, the great humorist, and successor
of Jean Paul, was born at Lovas-Bereoy on February 8, 1795.
This is a little Hungarian town in the Stuhlweissenbouro:
district, the inhabitants of which are engaged mostly in vine-
tillage.

The grandfather of the poet was named Israel Israel.
When the Jews, at the command of the Emperor Joseph II.,
were obliged to adopt family names, the magistrates summoned
the above-mentioned grandfather, and asked him what name
he wished to be known by in future. Israel Israel at first
did not himself know ; but, as he wore on his finger an heir-
loom in the shape of a signet ring with a sapphire stone in
it, the magistrate suggested to him, " Call yourself simply
Saphir." And this he did.

It was the wish of his parents that M. G. Saphir should
enter a commercial house ; but he himself desired a literary
career. A middle course was sought for, and Saphir was set
to study the Talmud. Saphir went to Prague, in order to
devote himself to the study of the Talmud. Thus passed the
long period from 1806 — 1814. He spent these beautiful
years of youth in the earnest and unremitting pursuit of this
knowledge.

A really spirited nature however will not allow itself to
be for ever gagged and fettered, and so, by and by, Saphir
burst his restraining bonds, and firmly decided only to listen in

MORITZ G. SAPHIR. 445

future to the inspirations of his muse. The young writer was
very well received by the reading world ; his poems found a
warm welcome, and his satirical talent especially attracted an
unwonted amount of attention. The future unsparing critic of
bad writers and rhymers was at this time remarkable for the
weight of his lash.

Saphir however was not contented with the laurels which
a city of the second rank could afford. Pesth was not at that
time fitted to become the Capua of any great talent. Our
humorist hastened from thence to the imperial city on the
upper Danube. Literary and artistic circles in Vienna all
admired him greatly.

Unpleasant incidents, produced by some of his satirical
writings, induced Saphir to leave Vienna and go to Berlin.
The richly-gifted writer was by no means received there with
open arms, for at that time an envious feeling was prevalent,
which caused them to receive the most brilliant productions
of Southern Germany with cold and severe criticism. Holtei
has described with praiseworthy honesty in one of his books
how terrified every one was when Saphir, thanks to his
Schnelljwst, which he began to publish in 1826, suddenly grew
to be a power in criticism.

In the following year he founded a second periodical. The
Berlin Courier. At this time he began to use his well-known
nom de plume, Dr. Debeck, with which he signed many later
articles. Opponents were not wanting, but Saphir came out
of such polemical skirmishes with fresh laurels.

In the year 1828, Saphir wrote two pamphlets which the
brilliancy of his mockery and satire made famous. One
brochure bore the title Der yetodtete und dock lehendige Saphir,
and the other Kommt her! Both pamphlets created a
tremendous sensation.

In 1830 he made a journey to Paris. He lived while in
Paris in cordial intercourse with Heinrich Heine and Ludwig
Biirne : in fact he lived in a furnished apartment immediately
above the room occupied by the latter, which served still
further to strengthen the bonds between them. In the same
year, namely 1831, Saphir was recalled to Munich by the
King of Bavaria, in order to undertake the editorship of Der
Bairische Beohachter, and he also started at the same time

44G MORITZ G. SAPHIE,

liis Milnchener Ilorizont, which in a short time became one of
the most widely-read papers in Germany.

In the beginning of 1832, his profession of Christianity
took place. Saphir was baptized in Dean Beck's house,
according to the practice of the Protestant Church.

With the year 1834, his journalistic activity in Munich
came to an end. Saphir returned to Vienna. His fame as
an author procured him admittance to salons whose doors
were opened only to the creme de la creme. That he should
thus be introduced into the drawing-rooms of the great, was a
reward which only envy or ignorance could have objected to.

From this time he was recognized as the principal critic in
the capital. Three years later (1837) he began the editor-
ship of his journal De7' Humorist. After 1850, Saphir's
humorous and satirical Volkskcdender appeared annually, and
became so popular that in spite of an edition of from 16,000
to 20,000 copies, it was usually sold out in a few weeks.
Saphir procured further benefit to poetry and art by the
founding of his Musihaliscli-dedaraatorisclie Ahadertile.

His fame as a writer spread far ; and he undertook some
professional tours beyond the frontiers of the Empire. They
were intellectual triumphs. Soon after, as will be read further
on, Saphir extended his conquests across the Rhine.

In the month of August 1858 he was sent as the
representative of literature to Brussels, to be present at the
marriage of the Archduchess Maria Henrietta Anna to the
Duke of Brabant, the Belgian Crown Prince. In Brussels
Saphir formed a close friendship with the celebrated Dumas
jHire, who subsequently, in the drawing-rooms of Prince
Napoleon and Princess Matilda, told so many fine stories
about the German humorist, that both illustrious members
of the French Imperial House lived in the belief that M.
G. Saphir was only a myth whom Dumas had created out of
his own mind, for the entertainment of the Prussian Court !
Saphir was consequently received with open arms in Paris,
when he went there to be present at the Industrial Exhibition
in 1855.

Saphir was tall and slender. In his eyes could be read
intellect and good-nature, — only about his lips there sometimes
hovered a sort of derisive smile. His dress was faultless, and

POET AND SATIRIST. 447

ho had the manners of a perfect gentleman. He was ahnost
the only German literary celebrity who, like our colleagues
across the Rhine, lived entirely by liis writings [Ein Rentier
des Geistes). In short he may be described as the German
Alexander Dumas. In addition to his mother tongue Saphir
spoke French, English, and Italian fluently, and also some
Hungarian. His Hebrew studies we have already mentioned.

With regard to ISaphir's poetry, one must especially admire
the many-sidedness of his talent. As a singer of love, and as
a lyric poet, Saphir could touch all hearts. His collection
Wilde Rosen may be compared to a jewel-case containing many
precious gems.

The pure morality which almost without exception distin-
guished his works is worthy of all praise.

Saphir was, however, especially distinguished in the domain
of criticism. He possessed all the gifts w^hich Borne has
stated to be necessary for a good critic, viz. wide reading,
general knowledge, versatility, and courage.

His handwriting was very bad. He humorously thus referred
to it : " If you cannot read my wi-iting you must have
patience till I come myself, and I will bring with me my
compositor from the printing-office, who is the only man on
earth who can read my writing. I will confide a secret to
you. In the course of years I and my compositor have so
grown together, that we deserve to be exhibited as a marvel-
lous phenomenon ! I cannot live without him, for nobody
else can put my writing in type ; but he also, good man, cannot
live without me, for he can no longer read ordinary good
writing ! "

He died on September 5, 1858, at Baden. The body was
thence conveyed to Vienna, where there was a very large
funeral.

Dr. Adler, Chief Rabbi in London, in a recent lecture on
Jewish humour, says of M. G. Saphir — "During the major
portion of the century, the Hungarian Saphir was acknow-
ledged as the leading humorist in Austria. His caustive
satire made him excessively distasteful to the petty sovereigns
with whom the Germany of those days abounded. Ordered
to quit the territory of one of these princelets, he calmly
observed, ' If his highness wuU deign to look out of his palace

448 MORITZ G. SAPHIR.

windows, he will see me crossing the frontier of his dominions.'
On another occasion the King of Bavaria, who was fond of
dabbling in poetry, ordered him to leave the country within
twenty-four hours. On being asked whether he could get
away in so short a time, he answered, * Oh, certainly ! For,
if my own feet will not carry me with sufficient rapidity, I
can always borrow some of the superfluous feet in his Majesty's
last volume of poems.' "

An author, jealous of Saphir's fame, taxed him with writing
for money. " I do not act thus," he continued, drawing himself
up proudly, '' I write for fame ! " "I admit the soft impeach-
ment," rejoined Saphir. " Every one writes for that which he
most grievously lacks : I lack money, you lack fame."

An acquaintance once said to Saphir, " Making debts ruins
a man." " My experience is different," dryly observed Saphir,
*' I find that paying debts ruins me."

Mrs. Amery, Dr. Saphir's cousin, writes of other relations
who were distinguished : —

" A cousin of dear Dr. Saphir, Karl Saphir, is still living,
and seventy-four years old. He is one of the professors of
the Musical Academy at Buda-Pest. Another cousin of Dr.
Saphir was the sub-editor of a principal Vienna journal, and
only recently died. Two others were well-known doctors in
Hungary — and a female cousin was devoted, the last twenty-
five years of her life, to the Froebel Schools of Buda-Pest, and
to the training of teachers on the Froebel system for Hungary.
The Emperor of Austria, King of Hungary, decorated her for
her services to education."

THE EXD.

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